Here it is! The sequel to "Life's Not Fair" exactly a month after the last chapter was finished. I would love to hear what you think after you're done reading. I appreciate any and all feedback.
Disclaimer: I don't own degrassi or Bridge to Terabithia or Somewhere over the rainbow.
A little ways down the road…
Cam's pov
"Cam! Cam hurry quickly! Get in here!" Maya calls from the living room excitedly. I start toward the living room with the glass of water I was going to get and wonder what she is so excited about. "What is it?" I ask as I make the last few steps into the living room where Jared is crawling along the floor and Maya and Lexi are watching excitedly.
"He's mobile! Oh my god!" I say excitedly before the small crawling baby stops and falls onto his tummy.
After missing Lexi's first time crawling at an away game it means a lot to be able to see Jared's. A wide grin adorns all of our faces as the 7 month old looks up at us and starts rambling the familiar syllable over and over "dadadadada"
I set my water down and pick up the small boy "Good job, buddy!" I tell him happily before planting a kiss on his chubby little cheeks.
"Jarebear, you did it!" Maya coos walking over and tickling the toddler in my arms.
He giggles, and I hand Maya the baby boy finally taking a sip of my water as she enthusiastically hugs the small boy.
"Daddy, we need to get a gate thingy so he doesn't go up the stairs and stuff." Lexi tells me smiling proudly at her baby brother with a few of her teeth missing.
"Good idea, Munchy! Baby proofing is very important!" I tell the 8 year old girl with her shoulder length hair in a pony tail.
"Daddy!" she says in a serious tone putting her hand on her hip. She's been asking me the last few months to stop calling her Munchy, and it's a hard habit to kick. She is my Munchkin and she always will be.
"Sorry Lexi" I grin at the girl who I can't believe is almost 9. "Thank you!" she grins widely running off out of the living room. It's so weird calling her Lexi, but I knew it would happen eventually. Kids grow out of nick names that their parents give them. I grew tired of being called Cammy Pajammy by my mom when I was younger than Lexi.
"She's getting sassy!" I joke with Maya as she plays with Jared on the carpeted floor.
"She doesn't get it from me!" Maya giggles cutely before continuing her baby talk with Jared.
"So did you decide what we're doing for your birthday? The big 3 O." Maya grins at me as she plays with the baby.
"I don't know. I was thinking that we might have my family visit for a week or so. I mean we haven't seen them in quite some time. Chase and Justin haven't even met Jared yet." I remind her hoping that she will agree to have them visit.
"All of them? We only have one spare room now, Cam. How will that work?" she asks looking stressed out by the suggestion.
"Well, with Audrey and Mickey here it's only my parents, Chase, and Justin and Lucas if he brings him. And, Audrey can probably have both mom and dad or Chase and Justin stay with her. She has a spare room in her apartment." I try and convince her with a hopeful smile.
"Please M, I miss them. It's all I want for my birthday." I frown giving her the puppy dog stare.
"Who am I to deny you your only birthday wish? Talk it over with Audrey, and we'll make the plans. You might want to make sure your brothers can get off of work too. It's kind of short notice." She adds picking up the baby and putting him in the Johnny Jump Up before sitting next to me on the couch.
"I already talked to them. We've been planning this a while. I just wanted to make sure you were okay with it." I smile at her sincerely. "You little sneak!" she giggles biting her lip. "I love you!" I tell her quickly pecking her cheek. "I love you too." She replies smiling at me.
"Can we please house your bothers?" she asks with a pleading look in her eyes. I know why she would rather have them than my parents. My mom is still very critical of her, and I get it.
"I don't think it'll be an issue. I'm pretty sure Audrey would rather have mom and dad anyway." I mention shrugging my shoulders and she nods happily. "So when are they coming? Your birthday is in two weeks." She asks raising an eyebrow at me.
"They'll be here the Sunday after this one so I guess like 9 days." I inform Maya nervously knowing that I should have asked her a while ago.
She sighs deeply and frowns at me. "I have a little over a week to make this house presentable enough for your mother?" I nod my head sympathetically and grab her hand.
"You're helping whether it's taking the kids somewhere while I clean or actually doing something. You are helping." She demands jokingly.
"Okay Boss!" I respond leaning in for a kiss. She pecks my lips quickly and gets up walking into the kitchen. "Where are you going?" I inquire sadly grabbing her hand as I follow her to the doorway.
"I'm gonna start dinner!" she replies sassily putting a hand on her hip. "Déjà vu, man!" I call as she continues into the kitchen. "What do you mean?" she asks opening the fridge and getting out the chicken that she had thawed for dinner tonight.
"She definitely gets it from you." I laugh following her into the kitchen and kissing her on the cheek as she starts preparing whatever she plans on making with the chicken.
"Go watch Jared!" she insists shaking my arms away from her waist. "Bossy!" I call jokingly as I walk into the living room to check on the little guy in his jumpy thing in the doorway to the dining room.
"He's content!" I call as I walk in and see the baby bouncing up and down happily gnawing on his plastic keys.
After a few minutes Jared starts crying and I pick him up only to find out that he had made a super stinky that went all the way up his back.
"Oh Jared, you're lucky you're cute." I groan holding the small baby as far from my body as possible as I carry him up the stairs to his nursery.
I lay the bawling baby boy onto the changing table preparing myself for the inevitably disgusting diaper change in my future.
After what seems like forever, I finally finish cleaning up the poopy diaper, and have a clean baby once again. "Where does that even come from? You don't eat that much." I say in the baby voice that pretty much everyone uses when talking to a baby.
"That's better!" I grin at the no longer crying baby after I changed his diaper and clothes.
Walking down the hall I pass Lexi's room and see that she is inside sitting on her bed Indian style with her little fancy gameboy thing that Maya's parents got her for Christmas. "Hey Lex, whatcha up to?" I ask her bouncing the baby in my arms gently.
"Playing video games!" she answers not looking up from the screen. "Oh... mom's making dinner. It should be done soon." I tell her walking out of the room. "Okay daddy!" she responds still enthralled in the game.
"Also, you need to clean this room up before Saturday. Aunt Audrey and uncle Mickey are coming over for dinner." I tell the young girl who is obviously tuning me out at this point. Well then!
Once back down the stairs I set Jared in the play pen and hand the blonde-haired baby boy a toy to keep him occupied.
I can't believe how far we've come in the last four years. We are a normal family again with the newest member sitting right over there. It's hard to believe that Wyatt would be turning 4 in just a few months if he would have made it. Our lives would be so different right now.
Lexi's cancer hasn't come back, and she is so very thrilled about that. She loves being able to play outside and hang out with friends and her cousins and what not. She's a few months from being done with 3rd grade, and I can't believe how fast time flies.
I still remember the day Maya told me she was pregnant with Lexi. We were so scared, but we did it. We have managed to make it through the struggles that parenthood has thrown our way so far. We have a lot left to go including the teenage years which are destined to be crazy. Lexi looks a lot like Maya and I can only imagine all of the boyfriends that I'm going to have to grill.
Let's not think about that. We have the present, and right now Lexi isn't interested in boys. Let's keep it that way as long as we can.
Maya appears in the living room where I am trying my best to keep baby Jared busy, and she comes toward me smacking my butt and startling me.
"Woah!" I say turning toward my giggling wife as she grins up at me quite cutely. "Why are you spanking me?" I ask the blonde haired woman curiously as she gives me a sly grin.
"You have a cute butt." She laughs wrapping her arms around me.
"Yeah? Not as cute as yours." I tell her coming in for a kiss. "Gross!" Lexi says walking through the living room and seeing us kissing.
Maya pulls away quickly and smiles at me. "Love you"
"Love you!" I respond tapping her nose.
"Hey honey, since you're down here could you set the table?" Maya asks Lexi not really asking, but telling as our young daughter groans going to the kitchen.
At dinner we tell Lexi that my family is coming to visit and she looks less than enthused about the news which is surprising. When she was little she loved going to Kapuskasing and she loved when they would come visit us.
"Can we tell grandma to be nice to mom this time?" Lexi asks moving her food around her plate clearly bored.
Maya raises her eyebrows at Lexi, and I give her a confused look as she explains herself. "Last time Grandma came to visit she told grandpa that mommy was stupid and a whole bunch of other mean names."
I choke on the water going down my throat setting my glass down shocked at what Lexi had told us.
"When did this happen?" I ask her curiously still not believing my ears.
"When Jared was born. I heard it from my room." She explains awkwardly.
"Well, I'm going to have to give Grandma a call. That isn't okay." I continue sharing a quick glance with Maya who looks kind of sad.
Maya's POV (Later that night)
I sit with Lexi in her bed as she reads another chapter of the book we are currently working on "Bridge to Terabithia". Seeing as she is only in 3nd grade, I have to help her with some things, but for the most part she is able to read the story on her own.
She doesn't even read it out loud yet still she insists on having me sit with her while she reads. It can get boring, but watching her face as she discovers all of the cool things that books can offer is reward enough. She's my little bookworm! She's such a smart little girl.
"Mommy, Leslie died!" Lexi tells me looking up at me sadly as she sets the book down on her lap having just finished chapter 10.
I put my hand on her back rubbing it reassuringly as she looks like she is going to cry. "She drowned in the creek. It's not fair." She continues dejectedly.
"It's alright honey. It's just a book." I tell her as she wipes a tear falling from her eyes.
"It's not alright. She's gone. She was supposed to be his best friend, and now she's just gone. Mommy, if Mikey died I would cry forever!" my little girl tells me with her lower lip jetting out and trembling in fear.
"Mikey isn't going anywhere, honey. Don't worry!" I tell the young girl as she leans her head on me. Maybe this book wasn't the best idea.
"Wyatt died and he was just a baby. Mommy, she didn't even believe is god. Did Wyatt believe in god? He's not in hell, mommy is he?" Lexi asks frantically and worriedly.
"He was just a baby, sweetheart. I'm sure he's in heaven." I tell the spooked little girl rubbing her back as comfortingly as I can as a tear erupts from my own eyes.
I hate thinking about Wyatt. I know that I shouldn't and it probably makes me a terrible mother, but I do. I think all of the time about how it would all be easier on all of us if I was never pregnant with him... if he never existed. His short life put us through hell, and I still feel guilty about it.
It's my fault that we don't have him here with us. If I would have just stayed with Lexi and Cam in the hospital we would have him running around right now.
I shake my head quickly dispelling all thoughts about Wyatt before glancing at the little girl beside me. My healthy little girl… Let's be grateful for what we have and not sorry for what we don't.
I love Lexi. I love Jared. I love Cam. I love going to school again. Without what happened with Wyatt I probably wouldn't have gone back to school. I didn't continue my performance degree, but I'm going for music ed, and luckily a lot of my credits carried over. I only have a semester left before I'm qualified to teach.
"Okay honey, get some sleep. I love you!" I mention getting up and kissing her on the forehead as I tuck her in.
"Love you too, mommy." She responds as she gets cozy under the covers.
I walk to Jared's room to see Cam still struggling to get him to sleep. "You've been here for 2 hours. It's not that hard." I comment taking the baby from his arms and sitting down on the rocking chair with him.
"You know what? It is hard. He doesn't like me. I call Lexi tomorrow night." He comments sadly hovering over my shoulder and watching as I lull the little boy to sleep.
"Somewhere over the rainbow way up high there's a land that I heard of once in a lullaby. Somewhere, over the rainbow, skies are blue and the dreams that you dare to dream really do come true" I sing to the baby slowly drifting into slumber. Carefully I place the sleeping child in his crib grabbing the baby monitor and Cam's arm as we walk out.
"There! It's easy!" I comment walking back to the stairs with Cam following behind.
"Maybe if I was a better singer… He doesn't like me like Lexi did!" he mentions as we walk down the stairs.
"Well, he's a momma's boy, and you can sing. We've proven it time and time again Mr. Falsetto!" I smile at him brightly.
He sighs and sits down on the couch puling me down with him.
"How shall we spend the rest of the night M'lady?" he asks me with a flirty smile. I pat his chest and stand up. "We can get a head start on cleaning for your family. Also, don't call your mom. We can let it go. She's never going to like me… We know that. It's not a big deal." I tell him with a hopeful smile.
"It's a big deal, M. I love you more than anything, and you're the smartest person I know. I don't get why she can't see how happy we are." He tells me sadly giving me a loving hug.
"Awe… I love you more than anything too... you, Lexi, and Jared are my whole world." I tell him hugging him back. "Now let's get cleaning!"
We start tidying the living room of toys and messes that occur on a daily basis before moving onto the heavy duty dusting and all of that.
Cam gets a call from Audrey, and she tells him that their parents can stay with her. Thank god!
I know that Chase and Justin are messier, but they're so much less… naggy!
If Lucas comes it might be a bit crazier, but it's okay. Lucas is a cutie, and I love when we get to see him.
Nora has him most of the time which really sucks for Justin, but he gets through it.
"It's kind of funny, Cam. Your mom loved Nora and supported their marriage and all of that, and they got a divorce. Maybe it's a good thing that your mom doesn't like me. She obviously doesn't have very good taste in spouses for her sons." I giggle wiping the counter.
"I don't know… I never thought that Justin and Nora would last. It sucks that they had a kid before she realized that she was a lesbian. Poor Lucas…" Cam comments sadly as he sweeps the floor.
"You think we'll last?" I continue curiously still wiping the counter as he looks up at me.
"I think so… We've made it through quite a bit. We can handle anything… I mean unless you have something to tell me?" she says giggling at the end.
"I'm not a lesbian if that's what you're implying!" I laugh biting my bottom lip.
"Then we're good!" He grins at me before resuming his sweeping. I have to go over the whole kitchen again when he's done, but what do I expect? He's not very good at sweeping.
Just a cute little chapter to set the stage. I hope you enjoyed it! Have a great Camaya day, and tell me what you think!