This was suppose to be just a little ficlet, a drabble. But 2k is not a drabble in my eyes. Anyways, just a short little fic between Jackson and baby number 2/3 while at the beach!
Enjoy!
"Are we there yet?"
Sammie's voice came from the back seat of the car, still too young to sit in the front seat with her brother. "No." Jackson says from the driver's seat, his eyes meeting hers in the rear view mirror. "Not yet, another fifteen minutes or so."
"Why did we have to go to the farthest beach from home? Widewater Beach is closer and we've been there a thousand times." The little girl says, placing her bookmark in her novel.
The man smirks. "Exactly, it's time for a change in scenery." He pauses, now serious. " We need a few days to make new memories. By getting out of the house and to Virginia Beach, we will do just that."
Sammie sighs, throwing her head back. "Fine. I don't see how having fun without Mom and Dad is going to make this day any better."
"They need their rest, Sammie."
Jackson glances back from the road to his much younger sister, watching as she rolls her head to look out the window. With their parents having her at such an late stage in their lives, Dana and Mulder couldn't keep up with the energetic seven years old. Last week, their mother had suggested that Jackson take his sister out for the day to give the two some time to rest and catch up on sleep. Sibling bonding time was just a bonus.
Waking them up at 5 this morning, waking the girl up and getting her ready didn't help all that much.
"Are we there yet?"
He smirks.
"Okay sis, do you want to get changed first or eat-" His sentence was interrupted by the seven year old running past him towards the water.
"You can't catch me!" He scoffs and closes the door before sprinting after her. The chase didn't last long. With his height giving him the extra mileage, he caught up fast. She laughs as he catches up to her, chancing a look behind her as his large steps were nearly on her. Next thing she knows, he's swooping her up into his arms. Her squeals fills the air. "No!" He swings her over his shoulder, spinning around once before heading back to the car.
"Now, what was I saying?" He chuckles.
"Something about eating." She giggles, kicking her feet as she swings back and forth.
"Do you want to eat before we go swimming? We have been in the car all day long as I heard you complaining the entire way here." He dodges her wild feet.
She doesn't answer him until she is swung around and back on her feet in front of the car. "Let's get some food, I'm starved!"
"And who's fault is that?"
"Yours for not stopping at Wawa's this morning."
"I told you to eat breakfast this morning."
"At 6am? Not a chance!" Sammie shot back, her hands on her hips.
Jackson takes a moment to look over his baby sister. He sees Dana so much in the little girl. Mulder was in there too, but as Dana had mentioned many times, he was the one who got most of his father's genetics, especially in looks. Still, the little redhead shares his stubbornness as well as many other traits.
Grabbing his swim suit and handing Sammie hers, he directs the girl towards the changing stalls. "I'll meet you out here, then we can get some chow."
"Ok dude!"
"Nothing too big! It's only 9. We would have been here sooner if it wasn't for the traffic."
"You know, Jackson, most restaurants don't open until 11."
"Then maybe we can find a cafe somewhere around here." He replies. The girl sticks out her tongue at her brother before walking into the girls' room to change as he walks into the mens' room.
He took his time getting changed but ends up waiting for her anyway. Moments pass before she walks out, ready for a day at the beach in her swimsuit, cover up, sunglasses, and floppy hat.
"You ready?"
"Better now?"
Sammie nodded, munching happily on her bagel and peach juice. "For now." She girl smirks up at him. "Until lunch." She adds, walking beside her brother as they head to the car. Together they pull out the the beach equipement and towels, the girl carrying as little as possible. "Do you think they're awake?" She asks, her arms full of the towels and the bag of beach toys as they step onto the hot sand.
Jackson doesn't miss a beat. "Yes, but that doesn't give you permission to harass them. We took this day to give them a break; you texting them will not help with that."
She stuck her tongue out at him, almost tripping over a large stick. "No fair, why did they have to be so old when they had me?"
The man swallows hard. How could he explain to his baby sister that he was the reason his mother became pregnant with her? He experimented on unfertilized chicken eggs as a teen, creating life. His shared visions with the woman had told him that she had wanted another child, especially after giving up her first. From that moment he had drained his powers to give her what wanted: a baby to raise. If only he had been able to do such a thing a long time ago, when Dana and Mulder were so much younger, where Sammie didn't have to wait patiently for her parents to catch up. But he was just a child at the time, he never knew.
"I don't know Sammie, thing just work that way." If his hands weren't so full, he would pull the girl into a hug. "But I'm happy to have you, you're the only sibling I ever had, and probably ever will have."
Their eyes meet and Sammie smiles toothly up at him. "I'm happy I have you too, big brother. Even if you're always working."
They chose their spot in the sand, not too far away from the water's edge but not in the middle of the crowd. Jackson set up the umbrella and chairs while Sammie places her supplies on her chair. With their area set up, the girl steps out of her flip flops and runs into the water.
"Sammie!" He calls, taking his phone out of his pocket and hiding it among their gear. He watches as she plays around the edge of the water, not going in deep. He takes a minute to make sure everything is safe before he heads after her. "Don't go running off like that!" He says to her when he finally catches up, his toes cold at the touch of the water. "Didn't mom ever tell you to not go running into the water without an adult with you?"
"Well yeah," She says knowingly. "But I knew you were going to be right behind me."
Seven, He sighs to himself. The know-it-all age; can she get any more sassy?
"Get it! Get it!" Jackson calls from a few metres away, watching as the volleyball lands out of her reach. "Almost!"
"I'm not as tall as you are!" The young girl shouts back, half swimming to the white ball. "You have a better chance of getting the ball than me!" She grabs it and hits it back towards the man. The ball falls out of reach for Jackson, which he suspects is purposeful. He centers his energy and pushes his body through the water, closer to the ball. "Hey! No cheating!"
He hits it back to her, missaiming and having it fall to her right, only a few feet out of her reach. His jaw drops as he watches her dive for it. Before him, she flies five feet through the water, reaching the ball just in time, hitting it and tossing it back to him. Too in shock, he lets the ball land in the water beside him.
"Sammie! Did you just do what I think you did?"
She just stares at him, not moving from her spot in the water. "You mean, I did that?" He nods in return, grabbing the ball and wades towards her. He has to talk to her in private.
Practically hovering over her, he bends down to whisper in her ear. "You did." He pauses, watching the wonder grow on her face. "How long have things been… different?"
She shrugs. "A while I guess." She doesn't meet his eye. "I didn't want to worry Mama and Daddy." He sighs, looking down at her, trying to catch her eye, after a moment, he does. "I didn't want them to think I was an experiment like you." Her eyes shift. He grabs hold of her hand and pulls her towards the beach.
"We aren't here to talk about me, Samantha." She glares at him, offended at her full name. He pulls his chair up in front of hers, having her sit down in her seat. "Sammie, they would want to keep you safe. I want to keep you safe. You should have mentioned this to us sooner."
She sits back in her chair, her arms crossed over her chest. "I know, Jackson." She was silent for a few minutes, though it felt like longer. "When did you first start showing your powers?" She finally asks.
Jackson hmm'd and ha'd for a moment before he finally answers. "Dana says I was only nine months old when I first started to move my mobile. But from my memory? For as long as I can remember."
Sammie was about to say something else when a strange woman came up to them. "Excuse me sweetheart, but is this man bothering you?"
She was in too much of a shock to say anything, her mouth gaping open. Jackson butt in instead. "Excuse me, we are having a private conversation."
The words from the woman shocks the both of them. "Shut it sicko, I wasn't talking to you." Sammie looks back and forth between the determined expression of the woman and and the shock on her brother's. "I saw you talking to this little girl in the water and dragging her out." She turns to the little girl. "Are you alright? Where are your mommy and daddy?"
Jackson could tell that Sammie has had enough of this crazy woman. Her expression hardens. "Mama and Daddy are at home. My big brother Jackson brought me to the beach so they could rest."
The woman's mouth gaps open. "Big brother?"
"Yeah," He finally jumps in. "Big brother. Ever heard of a bonus child? Same parents, many years apart. Large age gap."
"Very large age gap." Sammie inputs, smiling at him.
The woman steps back. "Oh, I-I'm sorry. I just thought you were another creep going after an innocent little girl." She pauses. "You know, you don't look anything alike."
Jackson smirks. "We know. Now, if you please, my sister and I were have a private conversation, and we don't want anyone intruding."
"Ye-yes, sorry." She stumbles on her feet. "Sorry." And with that, she is gone.
"Y'know, Jackson." Sammie smirks back up at him. "You didn't have to scare her like that."
"She accused me me of being a pedophile!"
"You did grab me."
The laugh escaping her lips was infectious and he couldn't help but smile. He couldn't wait to tell their parents.
Jackson delivers their meal to their spot on the beach. When he returns, Sammie is starting a sand castle in front of their beach chairs. "Lunch!"
The girl looks up to him, a smile plastered on her face. "Finally! What took so long?" She got up, brushing the sand off of her hands, doing her best to get every grain of sand off.
"Well, excuse me. It's not my fault that everyone on the beach is currently at the same restaurant, getting the exact same thing." Sitting in his chair, he hands the hot dog meal over to his little sister. "Don't tell Dana I fed you this, she just might kill me." Sammie snorts before giggling.
"Probably." She says before she takes a big bite of her lunch.
Jackson watches his sister before he takes a bite of his own fries, this was definitely a good day.
When she finishes her lunch ten minutes later, she gives him her sneaky grin and takes off toward the waves again. Jackson sighs, downs the rest of his fries easily, and chases after her. He wouldn't have it any other way.