A/N: Nearly five years ago I uploaded a work titled Parenting. Almost overnight Parenting skyrocketed in more views, comments, and subscriptions than I could ever imagine. I gained long-lasting friendships through Parenting and even closely worked with my readers on the chapters. I still get personal messages about Parenting to this day even though it hasn't been updated in years! Due to the fame of Parenting I began to seriously doubt my skills as a storyteller and I felt that the story I was writing wasn't worthy of your love so I deleted the entire work and promised to make it better. Although I successfully completed and uploaded three reworked chapters of Parenting it was never the same and I could feel your love diminish and the desire for the original work to return. I couldn't give you what you deserved and therefore I abandoned the rewrite.

I have always felt that the story never got a proper goodbye and that so many things were left unfinished. Before I deleted the original work I promised you guys a sequel. If you read the original Parenting then you may recognize the direction that I was taking it in to make it Growing Up.

If you are new here, welcome! Although this is technically a sequel it's also a new beginning with a new generation and you do not have to know anything about the original work to understand what is happening. I hope you love Growing Up the way that those before you loved Parenting!

I will never be able to give you the Parenting that you loved, but as a thank you for all your love and support over the years I hope that you guys can find comfort and answers in Growing Up.

Love Always,
Lilly

"And it's home sweet home!" Dean cheered as they walked through the airport with their suitcases rolling behind them. They'd been on the road for six months, half of a year, and Hunter, the ever generous uncle that he was, had finally stopped being the world's biggest douche and let them have some time off. It was only a week but it was a week well deserved and very much needed.

"And as soon as we get home someone is taking a nap." Roman declared as he looked over to Seth who was fiercely rubbing at his eyes and stumbling to keep up with the older men. A few whines and whimpers had fallen from the boys lips since they unboarded the plane and by Roman's calculations it would only be a matter of time before a full on Sethie meltdown occurred.

"I could use one myself." The Samoan chuckled through his yawn as Dean nodded his head in agreement. The flight from Paris back to Pensacola had given the three men a horrible case of jet lag and Roman wouldn't be surprised if they slept through their whole entire vacation.

Roman took Seth's hand in his own to lead the sleepy boy through the car garage while Dean grabbed the youngests suitcase in his free hand. Once they reached the SUV Dean loaded up the back with their luggage while Roman buckled Seth into his car seat, "Try and take a nap baby. We'll be home before you know it." He pressed a kiss to the boy's multicolored locks before shutting the door and turning to Dean, "We all ready to go?"

"Just about." He said as he loaded the last suitcase and closed the hatched before giving Roman a thumbs up and crawling into the back seat for a nap of his own. He shrugged his jacket off and threw it over him as a makeshift blanket as he curled up on the seat.

Dean couldn't help but to glare up at Seth as the boys car seat dug into his skull. He tried to scoot himself down in the limited space but it was no use. With a huff and a groan Dean kicked at the back of Roman's seat in frustration before dramatically flopping into a few different positions until he found one that didn't kill his body, "This blows." The man grumbled to himself his eyes narrowing at Roman when he heard his father laughing at his pain and misfortune.

"We should be home soon." Roman smirked, "it's not that long of a drive. And what have I told you about kicking seats?" Roman lifted his eyes in the rearview mirror to lock eyes with the blue eyed boy giving him a stern glare, "Don't make me call your mother." He chuckled as Dean threw his jacket over his eyes and he just knew that his son was sticking his tongue out at him from under it.

"Seth, Dean, we're almost there. It's time to get up." Roman called out as he pulled through the gate to the community.

It didn't take Dean long to get up—with Seth's seat digging into his brain it had been impossible to fully fall asleep. The blonde ran his hands over his face to rub the sleep off and gently reached over to shake Seth awake, "We're home." He whispered to the whining boy, chuckling as Seth glared up at him halfheartedly. "I know Monkey, but you can sleep again once we get inside." Dean ruffled the boy's hair and smiled as they pulled into the drive way to Roman's condo.

Before Roman could even cut the engine a pixie girl with blonde and blue hair came bounding down the steps shrieking at the top of her lungs, "Daddy!" Roman had barely just enough time to throw the car door open before she threw herself into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. She pressed a haste kiss to his lips before clambering into the back and throwing her arms around Seth before turning to face Dean, barely acknowledging the "Hello Alexa" from Seth, with a cautious look on her face.

She tilted her head to the side, her blue dyed ends bouncing around her shoulders, looking at Dean curiously before crawling tentatively into his lap and placing her knees on either side of his legs. She reached a hand out, gingerly touching his stubbed cheek with the tips of her fingers. She pressed the tips of her fingers a bit harder into his skin and a large smile appeared on her lips as his cheek smushed up, "Hi daddy!"

"Hi Princess." Dean's smile mirrored the girls as he twirled the blue ends of his daughter's hair around his index finger, his other hand coming up to wipe some of the tears from her eyes. "Oh no princess, none of that." He pressed his lips to her forehead and smiled as her arms were thrown around his neck. "You miss me that much?" as Alexa nodded her head, Dean felt his heart swell. "I missed you too." He whispered as he tightened his arms around her waist and tried his best to maneuver them both out of the car.

"Where are you brothers?" Dean asked as he set Alexa down on her feet, smirking as she clung tightly to his pants leg while he got the luggage out of the car.

"Inside." The blonde shrugged. The action made Dean raise his eyebrow at the younger girl as he shut the hatch and he carded his fingers through her colored curls once again, "Uh huh and have they been being nice to you?" Dean asked. Alexa shrugged her tiny shoulders once again and latched onto Dean's belt instead of his pant leg, "Grandma makes them be."

Dean chuckled and led her inside of the house, "Well that's what grandmas are for." He said, leaning down to kiss the wild curly haired woman's cheek, "Hi mom."

JoJo smiled up at him and patted his cheek lovingly before turning back to the blonde, "Alexa, now I told you that you weren't too get up from that table until you finished your carrot sticks. Go sit down."

Alexa reluctantly broke her grip on Deans belt as they walked into the kitchen. She took her place back at the table and resumed her lunch happily but her eyes never left Dean. It was almost as if she was afraid that if she looked away than he would disappear.

He dumped the bags by the door, watching as Roman and Seth made their way to kiss JoJo's cheek, and he pressed another kiss to Alexa's head before walking out into the living room where a tattooed boy was curled up under the covers on the couch, his brown hair completely disheveled and lying flat over his head.

Tattooed hands were folded perfectly under the boy's cheek and Dean tried not to groan at the colorful new addition to the boy's throat. He moved to sit on his knees and brushed the brown hair off the boys (thankfully not tattooed) forehead, smiling as his face twisted up in displeasure. "How's he feeling?" Dean asked as he turned his head up to look at JoJo.

"He's been complaining of headaches at least every day. They've benched him for a good two months."

Dean sighed and got back up to his feet figuring that it was best to just let him sleep if he was in that much pain. Dean was going to ring Hunter later and give him a peace of his mind.

"Something's not right." Dean whispered out as he got up from the couch. They were backstage after running through dress rehearsals for that nights show, the roster had just stopped for lunch and everyone was gathered in the makeshift cafeteria watching as NXT was being streamed—Corey was up against Adrian Neville. He'd taken a serious kick and as he fell, Dean watched the boys head bounce off the canvas. "Hunter, something isn't right." Dean said again, watching as the camera's focused in on Corey's glassy eyes.

"Damn'it Graves! I've told him a million fucking times to tuck his head. Hunter, call down there and see what's happening!" Dean demanded once again. His eyes narrowed at his uncle before shifting back to the tv just in time to see a referee guide Corey back up the ramp. He felt his stomach clench as he watched the tattooed man stumbling up the ramp, basically being man handled to walk. Dean knew he'd hit his head hard but he didn't think It was that hard.

With a shake of his head he sighed and gathered up his jacket off the couch before moving to leave, "That's it, I'm going down there. Someone book me a flight." He muttered, tensing when he noticed that there wasn't any movement." I said, Someone book me a fucking flight!" he screamed at the assistants crowding around his uncle.

Roman placed his hand on Dean's shoulder to calm the boy down while Hunters large hand came to rest on his chest, "And just what do you think you're going to do? It's obvious that he's got a concussion. So we'll bench him, let's his brain heal, he'll be alright. There is nothing we can do and there is nothing you can do. You've got a match, Dean. You've got millions of fans coming here in a few days to see you. That you can do. For Corey? There's nothing."

Dean's eyes narrowed at his uncle as he scoffed in disbelief, "If It was Randy?" he asked before turning to his father, "If it was Seth or Sami? You both would've shut this whole stupid ass pay-per-view down!"

Hunter rolled his eyes, "We're in Paris, Dean. By the time you can even get home it'll be time for your vacation anyway. " He only got a scoff from Dean in response, "Well excuse me that my kids aren't big time WWE Superstars and they're stuck in some shitty ass warehouse!" The Ohioian screamed before pulling out his phone and storming off. If Hunter wasn't going to get him updates, he'd get them himself.

Dean repositioned the covers over Corey's shoulders before getting back up to his feet and rejoining everyone in the kitchen. He went to stand behind Alexa and ran his fingers through the ends of her hair as she slowly ate her lunch, "Where's the baby?" he asked his mother as his fingertips tapped at the inside of Alexa's wrist, reminding her of the task she currently had and her need to stay focused.

"He and Sami are in their room taking a nap. He's had a bit of a fever today but it's nothing I'm too worried about. The boys have been fighting a cold for a few days now."

Dean hummed as he looked down and surveyed Alexa's plate; she still had half a peanut butter sandwich and a few carrot sticks left over that had barely even been nibbled at. He tried to push the worried feeling in his stomach to the side as he lifted his gaze back up to JoJo and silently pointed at the girls plate. The unspoken question only got him a shrug and a shake of his mother's head. He felt the worried feeling rising up his throat, she wasn't eating.

Dean tried not to blame himself and his absence as he worked hard not to let his mind go to where it wanted so badly to go. JoJo had said the boys had been sick and Alexa could've easily picked it up. She could've been too excited about Dean coming home to focus on her lunch. There could've been a million reasons other than the one that was pushing at his mind because there was no way that he would let himself believe that Alexa had relapsed back into her Anorexia.

"Lex? Something wrong with your lunch?" He asked as he took a seat next to the girl, making sure that his hand was still touching at least some part of her body knowing that the loss of contact would return that anxious feeling that Dean was going to disappear. Dean really needed to speak to Hunter about getting more time off.

The pixie girls blue eyes lifted from her plate, to Dean, to JoJo, and back to Dean again. They slowly shifted over to JoJo before snapping back to Dean's and she waved a hand at him to lean in so she could whisper in his ear, "Grandma is a horrible cook." She whispered, unknowingly loud enough for everyone to hear. "It doesn't taste like your sandwich at all and she left the crust on. You're much better!"

Dean tried not the chuckle at the little girls words or laugh at the offend look on his mother's face as she pouted to his father, "That bad, huh?" he asked with a smirk as he pulled away to look at his daughter nodding her head, "How about I make you a new one with no crust?" The glow on her face and the excited nod of her head was the only thing that banished his panic feeling. His little girl was alright, he hadn't failed her completely.

"You said he had a fever?" Dean asked JoJo, watching as Alexa happily munched away on her snowflake shaped sandwich, sans crust. Number one rule to get Alexa to eat anything—Make it resemble something from the movie Frozen and she'd probably even eat horse liver.

The curly haired girl nodded her head, "It's been going up and down, I put him in the room with a humidifier to help his congestion and gave him meds to regulate his fever. I tried to get him in a sleeper to help with his shakes but you know how he feels about clothes…" they shared a chuckled before she continued," Steph's given us off at the performance center until I can get everyone under control. I'm sure Alexa is going to come down with something here soon, I've been trying to keep her out of the boys room as much as possible."

Dean nodded his head, "Thanks for taking care of him. Make sure she finishes that?" He gestured to his daughter before making his way back to his old bedroom, "I'm gonna check in on him."

Dean slowly opened the bedroom door, a small cloud of mist escaping through the opening as he made his way inside the dark room. He could make out Sami's snoring coming from his crib and the sound of wheezing breathes filled his ears as he turned to his youngest son. He looked down into the crib at the boy with the disheveled hair and flushed cheeks. Dean pressed the back of his hand to his child's forehead and frowned at the warmth that came off his little boy, "oh baby boy." He whispered, his heart sinking at the snot filled sniffle that filled the room.

Reaching over to the changing table, Dean grabbed a tissue and wiped at the boy's nose. He tried to be as gentle as he could so that he didn't wake the boy up but when blue eyes blinked up at him he knew he had failed. The blue eyes went from disbelief to confusion to sadness and back again. The boy rolled onto his belly and pushed himself up onto his butt, "Hi daddy." His voice croaked out.

Dean smiled down at the blue eyed boy and smoothed a hand down the back of the boy's head, "Hi Finn, I've missed you." Unlatching the railing he pulled Finn from the crib and brought him into his arms. He wiped at the boys running nose again as he walked them over to the rocking chair and sat down, letting Finns head rest against his shoulder.

Finn blinked up at him again," Hi daddy" his voice was full of wonder. It was almost as if he couldn't fully believe that Dean was here.

Dean chuckled and ran a hand down Finn's cheek, "Hi baby."

"Hi Daddy."

Dean smiled and kissed the top of Finn's head, "Hello sweetheart. Are you thirsty?" He stood up and walked over to the tiny fridge in the corner of the room and pulled out a premade bottle of juice. He walked back to the rocking chair and settled in before bringing the rubber nipple to Finn's lips but not before another, "Hi daddy." could slip out.

"Hi baby boy." Dean chuckled. His heart swelled at the sight of tears forming his baby's eyes. He pulled the bottle from Finn's mouth and brought the boy into a hug, "oh sweet baby, shh, don't cry honey. It's okay, I'm home now. It's alright." His hand rubbed soothing circles on the Irishman's back and his lips pressed against Finn's clammy temple.

"I'm home baby, you don't need to cry." He wiped at Finn's nose again and guided the boys head back onto his shoulder, he kept his hand cupping the back of Finn's head and his thumb stroked the skin behind the boy's ear. "Oh my sweat baby, I've missed you so much." Dean pressed a kiss to the top of Finn's head and reached for the bottle once more. He brought it to Finn's lips and smiled down as he sucked the rubber teat into his mouth. Dean kept his lips pressed to Finn's head as they silently rocked.

"God this is so hard." Dean breathed out as he looked out into the living room to where all three of his children were currently curled up on the sectional watching a movie with their uncles. His heart swelled at the sight, he wished that he had more time with his children but unfortunately those just weren't the circumstances. Sure, they flew out to him for pay per views and Dean tried to come out on his days off or to support them if they had big, important matches but those were far and few. "I hate this." He said as he rubbed the tears out of his eyes with the heel of his palms.

"It doesn't get any easier." Roman knew just what Dean was feeling, all those times that he had to leave Sami with JoJo when they were on the road was hard enough and he couldn't imagine having to do with three children. "You have to enjoy the time that you get with them. We only have a week so don't worry about visiting with us, you all can spend the night here then you need to take your babies home and spend as much time with them as you can."

Dean smiled his thanks before turning to JoJo who was calling out for him. He took note of the phone that was resting between her shoulder and her ear, and the nervous way that she was pacing the kitchen floor. He knew the look on her face could only mean one thing. Excusing himself from the table, he went into the kitchen and leaned against the counter as he eavesdropped for a few seconds. "What does he want?" Dean spat out, making sure he was loud enough that the person on the other line could hear him.

"He wants to know if you misplaced a jacket for Emma in your luggage…"

Dean scoffed and grabbed for the phone but JoJo was quick and ducked out of the way in time, "You tell him that if he has something to say that he needs to say it and not hide behind lame excuses. She doesn't need a jacket, it's fucking Florida. Does he really think I'm that bad of a parent that I wouldn't pack our kid a coat? It's a hundred fucking degrees outside. She doesn't need a goddamn jacket!"

JoJo stared at him for a brief moment unsure of if she should actually repeat his words or not but the voice on the other end started to reply and she was thankful that she didn't actually have to say anything. She listened to what the voice was saying before looking back up at Dean. "He wants to know if he can have the kids Friday."

"What for?! You know what, it doesn't matter the answer is no. No he can't! I'm not giving up my time with my kids. The deal was that when I'm home I get the kids and he gets Emma. He's had six months with them so whatever he needs them for on Friday should've been done while I was gone." Dean shook his head at the audacity of the man on the other phone and leaned down to speak into the earpiece, "Why don't you focus on spending some time with your daughter, Baron?! It's not like you haven't seen her for six fucking months or anything."

JoJo bit her bottom lip and leaned out of Dean's reach. She sent a helpless glance to Roman who came into the kitchen and put a firm hand on Dean's shoulder, "That's enough now. Go calm yourself down and sit in the living room." He said to Dean before turning back to JoJo, "Tell Baron I'll drop off a jacket for Emma in a few and then we'll discuss giving him the kids for an hour on Friday." When Dean opened his mouth to protest Roman held his hand up, "It's just an hour, Dean. It'll give the kids sometime to spend with their sister and you'll want the time to rest, trust me."

"I shouldn't give him anything. I should've cut off his visitation and kicked his ass to the curb." Again, Dean made sure it was loud enough for Baron to hear and he'd just barely missed the "That's a real nice way to talk in front of our kids, Dean." That came from the other line. He spun fast on his heel and grabbed for the phone, succeeding this time. "So was cheating on me and abandoning your family!" he yelled down the line. He threw the phone, watching it crash and break against the wall, "I'll buy you another one." He spat, storming out of the kitchen and into the living room. He grabbed up Alexa and held her tight against his chest. He didn't wait for Roman's response, right now all he wanted was his kids and to forget that Baron Corbin even existed.

Ten months earlier:

"You be a good girl while I'm gone, okay? You listen to grandpa and uncle Bray, don't give them any trouble." Dean kissed the blonde head and pulled back to look at his daughter, "I'll only be gone a week and before you know it I'll be back and it'll be time for you to go see Papa." He could see the disappointment written all over his daughters face. She wanted to come with him, she wanted to be home and be with her family. Unfortunately, scheduling just didn't work out that way.

Emma tightened her grip on Bray's fingers before silently nodding up at Dean. Lowering her eyes, she drew circles on the carpet with her toes and let out a tiny sniffle before she felt herself being pulled in by strong arms.

"You're gonna be okay." Dean whispered in the girl's ear. "You're my big, strong girl." Sliding a hand under her bottom, Dean lifted her so her legs could wrap around his waist. He nuzzled his face into her neck and locked eyes with Bray who gave him a silent nod; reassurance that he'd do everything in his power to protect her.

"I'll be home soon, baby girl." Dean chuckled into the phone as he walked the aisle of the plane, his eyes sweeping left and right for his seat. "Well honey, if that's what Papa said than you need to listen." When he found his seat Dean slid into it with an inward groan when he saw that the window seat was already occupied with an old lady. He smiled politely at her before turning back to his conversation, "Alexa, it's already past your bedtime. If you were told you can't stay up than you need to start getting ready for bed. I'll be home by the time you wake up, princess. I have to hang up now, I'm on the plane. I love you very much and I'll be home soon."

After the goodbyes were said, Dean turned off his phone and pocketed it. He leaned his head back against the seat intending on sleeping through the flight when he heard the raspy voice next to him. "Children can be persistent, can't they?"

Cracking his eyes open, he looked toward the older woman and gave her that same polite smile from before, "Yes ma'am they can."

"Are you away from her often?"

Dean nodded his head, "My job keeps me away a lot."

"I'm going to see my daughter as well." She said before her eyes lit up with excitement, "I'll be meeting my grandson for the very first time. It's my first one." She dug around in her purse and pulled out a stack of photos then handed them to Dean who reluctantly looked through them. About twenty photos in he realized that his polite smile turned into a genuine one as pictures of bath time and drooly smiles made him laugh. He sat the pictures on a tray table in front of him before lifting up to dig for his wallet.

He opened it up to the photo of him and Baron with all of the kids. He smiled briefly down at it before flipping to the childhood photos he kept of his kids, for moments like this when he couldn't exactly whip out a photo of a 37 year old and say 'this is my newborn son' and have someone be cool with it. He pulled out the photo of Alexa in pigtails and a cheerleading costume and handed it to the woman, "that is my little princess."

"Oh she's precious. Your parents must be very proud." the woman cooed with a little chuckle. "Is this your first?"

He bit his lip, a little unsure of how to answer that. Of course, technically Alexa had been his first, then Corey, then Finn, and lastly Emma. But he knew that he had to go by in age order so he shook his head, "No ma'am, I have three more. Two 'head of her and one behind." He pulled out the childhood photos of Emma, Corey, and Finn and passed them along.

"Ahh, perfect pairs." The woman chuckled.

"Ha, yeah, I guess I kind of lucked out there a bit."

"Which one is the oldest?" She asked.

"Ah," he tapped the picture of Corey. "That would be this little trouble maker. His name is Corey." He moved to point to the picture of Emma, "then Emma" he moved to the photo of Alexa, "and then this little princess is Alexa and then-" he tapped the last photo, "this is my baby boy Finn."

"Beautiful." She smiled down at the photo of Finn before Looking up at him, "you and your wife must be very proud."

"Erm, boyfriend...actually" he trailed off and looked down to the ground while chewing his lip.

She chuckled and took the stack of photos off his tray flipping to what appeared to be a family portrait; The baby was sitting on the lap of one woman while the other woman was leaning down to kiss the top of the baby's head. Dean looked down at the photo with a smile before the older woman took his hand, "We've all got to find love somewhere, son."

Dean let out a deep sigh when he pulled into his apartment complex. It felt so great to be able to be home for a few days. He missed his babies and it'd be nice to have a day or two with his mom.

He stared up at the window that belonged to Corey's room for a few seconds before he cut the engine and popped the trunk to pull out his suitcase. As he ascended the stairs, he flipped through his key ring until he found the house keys.

Letting himself into the apartment, he frowned at the darkness and quietness of the house. It wasn't that he was expecting the children but he at least thought that Baron would've stayed up to greet him home. He sighed and sat his suitcase by the door and tossed his keys into the bowl on the kitchen counter.

He walked down the hall toward the bedrooms and opened the door to Alexa's room first, smiling when he saw the little girl curled up into the perfect ball with her hands tucked under her cheek. He smiled and shut the door before turning to his right to open the door to Corey's room. He was shocked to see that it was actually clean for once. The boy was laying on his back, one leg star fished out and the other tucked up under him. One hand was lying on his stomach, the other tucked into his pants. His mouth was wide open, loud snores filling the room.

Dean chuckled and shut the door before walking the rest of the length of the hall to his bed room, He was so ready to cuddle with his man and get a good night's sleep for once. He pushed open the door with a smile, that smile instantly fading as he heart dropped into his stomach.

No...

The moon light illuminated the room. A pale back shimmered in the light, black curls bounced with every thrust of hips. Breathy moans filled his ears and mixed with a familiar accent that caused a sick feeling to swirl in his stomach. He shut his eyes tight, telling himself that this wasn't real and he was still sound asleep on the plane.

"Dean?"

He shut his eyes tighter as Baron's voice filled his ears. He didn't want to see him, not when he had already seen her.

"Dean, this isn't what it loo-"

"In front of our son, Baron?" Dean croaked out, his eyes flying open and flickering over to the crib in the corner of the room, avoiding all eye contact with the man in front of him. "God forbid you cheat on me at all but are you really ballsy enough to fuck her in front of our son?"

"Dean-" his eyes snapped over to the owner of the deep accent and he narrowed his eyes,

"Go home, Paige!" He growled out. It took all the strength he had not to lunge at the girl when she scurried past him.

He let his eyes flutter shut and he swallowed hard before prying his eyes open and letting them float up to Baron's face. He tried to keep his tears out of them as he spoke, "Our kids are in the house!" He whispered out. He hated the way his voice cracked with every word. "Our baby is right there!"

"I'm sorry..."

Dean shook his head and leaned out of Baron's reach, "We're supposed to be providing them safety and stability, Baron!"

"Dean.."

"You have ruined everything for them!" His lip quivered and he bit down hard on it to make it stop. "I'm calling my mom to get the kids. I want you to pack your things and leave."

"Dean, stop." Baron sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Don't do this to them…"

"I didn't do anything, Baron." Dean scoffed. "You did."

A hand pressing toward his cheek brought him out of his memory and his eyes refocused back to the worried blue eyes that were staring into his, "Don't cry, daddy." Alexa smiled at him, despite the fear in her eyes. She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his forehead. "Don't cry…"