A/N: Tee hee – back by popular request (and I love the Nick/Mally universe too, btw) the sequel to Diff'rent Strokes! This picks up three years after DSFDS. And thanks so much for the amazing bunch of reviews for the final chapter – 21 is the most reviews ever for a chapter story. You made my Sunday (and Monday!). Thanks to everyone who made suggestions and offered encouragement – you rock! This first chapter is dedicated to you…enjoy (and PLEASE review – wink wink, nudge, nudge, say no more)

It was a melting pot of sounds that would've driven any other man insane, but to Nick Stokes, it was music to his ears. After pulling into the driveway of his suburban Las Vegas home, the tired but genuinely happy CSI walked up the steps to the front door. From outside, he could hear the distinct sounds of Nelly Furtado's "Loose" blaring from his twenty-year-old (soon to reach the big 2-1) daughter's bedroom. She'd just returned home for Spring Break of her junior year of college. Nick, Sara, and the kids were thrilled to see her and Mally loved to see them too, but college life was different from home sweet home. She blasted her music a little too loud these days, sometimes to drown out the sounds of the young ones in the house.

As he opened the front door, his seven year old son, Aidan was pummeling his best friend Jake on the living room floor, apparently fighting over the video game that was up the loudest it could go on the television. The racing car on the screen was at a standstill as the computer's cars raced past. Nick piped for them to cool it and turn the sound down, and the boys immediately obeyed.

He walked into the kitchen to find his oasis at this point in his life. His wife, Sara, was patiently helping a two year old Mari plop some chocolate chip cookie dough onto the baking tray. The little girl's lip was stuck out to the side in pure concentration, and she didn't even notice her daddy watching her. Sara looked up and smiled as the blob fell to the tray. Just to their left was a somber looking Bailey, in a world of her own, playing her handheld Game Boy Advance.

When Nick plopped his keys on the counter, Mari's eyes lit up to see her beloved daddy. She practically dropped the spoon she was holding, and Sara rushed to grab it before it fell on the chair cushion. The two year old was covered in cookie dough, but Nick didn't mind one bit as she crashed into his waiting arms.

"Daddy! I make cookies, lookit!" She reported proudly. Nick kissed her repeatedly all over the face and stood up, her feet dangling at his sides. He glanced over at Sara and Bailey, who still had a sad look on her face. Nick knew Sara would tell him what was up in a second, but he hated to see one of his three little girls upset. As a father, he was always extra protective of his daughters.

"I could smell it from outside! It smells wonderful!" He praised her, now positioning her on his hip. Mari held on to him loosely, her eyes wide and innocent, and so happy in this moment. Nick loved his fourth child insanely, like all the others, and cherished his time with them when they were small. Life was still so new and exciting to her, and getting tickled or having raspberries blown on her tummy never got old.

Mari was planned, but still a surprise. Nick and Sara had decided a few years back to have another child at some point, but wanted to wait until the twins got into kindergarten. But, life happened, and Mari was conceived a few months after their fourth birthday. Bailey and Aidan were five and just starting school when their baby sister arrived, and Mally was nineteen beginning her sophomore year at Western Texas. Nick and Sara were, of course, thrilled with the pregnancy after the initial shock, but everything worked out. They were a little unprepared financially, with three children already, and one in college. But they managed, and they couldn't be a happier family. Well, most of the time.

"Daddy want one?" She asked her father as, pointing her tiny finger as he went to investigate a finished batch by the stove. Though she was really far away, Nick immediately brought her hand back up away from the stove.

"Careful. The stove is hot, baby."

"Hot?" She said curiously.

"Yes, you'd get an ouchy if you touched it."

Mari's face scrunched up in despair at the thought and shook her head, communicating her desire for this not to happen to her precious fingers.

"Ouchy bad." She declared.

"Good girl." Nick kissed her forehead and then pretending to eat her finger, setting her into fits of giggles. Sara smiled and finished putting the cooked batch onto the cooling tray. Their work schedule still panned out well still, with one parent going to work a day, leaving the other at home to care for Mari. With the twins in first grade, it was great to have one of them home always in case and when they arrived back from school.

Nick pulled out the chair at the table and set Mari in his lap. He reached for a nearby toy and handed it to his daughter so he could talk to his wife and older daughter. Mari happily accepted and was entertained, at least momentarily.

"Why the long face, Bailey?" Nick asked his middle daughter. He could guess it had something to do with school. First grade had been a big adjustment for the vivacious, energetic young girl. She just didn't seem to have the patience to sit still for that long, and wasn't that interested in learning. Bailey still did fine in school, but had some discipline problems. They'd had to warn the first grader yesterday that if they got any more calls or e-mails from Miss Lorden, they would have to punish her at home.

Sara waited for her daughter to explain, but she predictably didn't want to.

"Tell your father what happened." She ordered gently. Bailey sighed dramatically, still concentrating on her game. Nick reached over and retrieved it from her hands, shutting the game off. Bailey scowled at her father and crossed her arms, her bottom lip going out slightly, slouching in her chair.

"Bailey, you need to tell me what happened. Remember, being honest with us counts for a lot." Nick encouraged her. They'd found with Bailey that she hated telling the entire truth when she was in trouble. Often, the parents would find out bits at a time, all adding up finally to the complete story. They hated to have to drag things out of her, and encouraged her to come clean with them up front. Nick and Sara even tried to make a point of making her punishment less severe when she told the whole truth up front. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't.

"I got in trouble at school today." She told him meekly. Mari had since gotten bored and threw the toy on the floor, instead finding glee in playing with Nick's hands, which he tolerated like the trooper father he was. Nick managed to suppress a sigh of disappointment, but was sure his face displayed it.

"What happened, sweetheart?"

"It wasn't my fault –" She tried, but was cut off.

"Bailey, that's not how we begin an explanation." Nick reminded her. "Remember what we talked about before? If you're in trouble at school, you obviously did something the teacher didn't like. We've talked to Miss Lorden before, and she's a very nice, fair lady. We know she wouldn't accuse you of something she didn't know was the truth. Now, you need to start over. Tell me what happened at school today."

"I didn't get my work done in the morning because Brett kept bugging me and I couldn't concentrate, so I got a yellow card."

Nick and Sara knew well that a yellow card meant a missed recess in Miss Lorden's room. Bailey's best friend was another little rascal girl named Brett. Nick guessed Bailey had been bugging her pal also, and it wasn't just on Brett.

"So you stayed in at recess?"

"No. I forgot." She whispered. "Really, daddy, I did! And Miss Lorden came out to the playground and got me."

Sara had been listening intently to her daughter's recap of the story. She'd gotten a call from Miss Lorden that afternoon, and this wasn't the full story.

"And what else happened, Bailey?" Sara prompted her daughter. Bailey got a deer in the headlights look, unaware that her mother knew more. She didn't seem to realize that her parents communicated quite frequently with her teacher, and she would get caught telling little fibs.

"Huh?"

"What happened when you got back to the classroom?" Sara reworded. Both parents waited for her explanation.

"I argued with the teacher. Because I couldn't concentrate to do the work! I told her I had to go to recess, or she wouldn't get any work out of me."

"Bailey Catherine Stokes! I cannot believe your mouth!" Nick exclaimed, looking at his daughter in thought and confusion. "You know better than to speak to your teacher that way! That was rude and disrespectful."

"I know." She stared down at her feet, disappointed in herself. Bailey just couldn't concentrate at school sometimes. Her body got so angry at her when she didn't run around or talk to other people. She couldn't understand it, and it frustrated her. It bothered her that she was always getting in trouble because of it.

"Tomorrow, you will apologize to Miss Lorden for the things you said and your behavior. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. You need to go up to your room until dinner's ready." Nick pointed to the stairs. Sara didn't say anything. She hadn't let her daughter play with her friends after school that day, so the little girl had been stuck indoors playing her Game Boy and going stir crazy. Bailey had so much energy it was almost too much. And now with so many behavior problems in school, they were losing patience. Bailey wasn't a bad kid by any means. She just couldn't seem to sit still and keep quiet.

Though they shared parenting responsibilities, Nick was definitely still the disciplinarian of the two. With Mally, it was just him so he didn't even think about it, and after marrying Sara and having three more children, he'd stayed in the same mode. Sara and Nick still communicated and made decisions as a team (Most of the time, though it was hard for Nick to remember), but it was Nick who normally handed out the punishments and who the kids ultimately answered to. Sara admitted she was a softie, but Nick had no trouble laying down the law.

Bailey stormed up the stairs to her bedroom, but didn't slam the door. She was back in her stupid bedroom – the one she had to share with that two year old bratty attention-stealer. Bailey couldn't stand her little sister right now. She got all the attention, even from her friends. Whenever they came over, they always wanted to play with Mari. They delighted in trying to teach her new words, playing with her stupid toddler toys, and doing her hair. Her parents were head over heals for her, and Bailey just didn't seem to matter anymore. She only got their attention when she misbehaved at school, it seemed. Bailey plopped herself on her bed and stared up at the ceiling, and began to cry.

CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI

Back in the kitchen, Sara was cleaning up the cookie mess in preparation for dinner while she talked with her husband. Mari shimmied off his lap and waddled into the living room.

"Aid, your little sister's coming in there! Keep an eye on her!" Nick yelled into the next room.

"Okay, dad!" Aidan answered. He didn't mind his role as big brother at all. She was a heck of a lot more fun than Bailey the squirmer.

"So, what else did the teacher say?"

"Oh, Nick." Sara fetched some carrots from the fridge and set them on the cutting board. "She wants to meet with us tomorrow. She's really concerned about Bailey. The poor woman's tried everything, and so she wants to talk to some of her colleagues and get back with us."

"Really?" Nick was exasperated. "Bailey's that bad? Come on, Sar, don't you think it might be inexperience?"

Miss Lorden, Bailey's teacher, was fresh out of college and hot, Nick admitted. Bailey adored her and they thought she was a wonderful teacher, but how much could she know after six months of teaching?

"Nick. You know how Bailey can be." Sara started chopping up the vegetable. Nick gave a that's how it is shrug. After staying at home with the little girl and her brother every other day for five years, Nick knew how Bailey could be. Crabby and impatient could describe her. Or hyper and uncooperative. Sometimes disobedient, but overall a nice kid. Nick's heart broke sometimes seeing his daughter struggle. It was like she was stuck in some shell that forced her to make brash, unsound decisions. It was like she couldn't help it, and Nick didn't know what to do.

Aidan walked in the kitchen, sniffing the cookies. His friend had just left, hearing the door close, and Mari was tiptoeing behind her big brother. When her mother saw her, Mari put a lip up to her mouth and grinned mischievously. Aidan reached for a cookie and Sara lightly slapped his hand away.

"Dinner will be soon."

"Just one cookie?" He pleaded, eyeing the delicious treats.

"Nope. You'll…"

"Spoil your dinner." Aidan joined in her common recitation.

"Read my mind!" Sara chimed.

"Boooo!" Mari screamed, grabbing her brother's legs suddenly. Aidan was used to it, but he played a long, making a gasping noise.

"Mommy, was that a ghost?" He worried out loud.

"I don't know. Maybe. Have you seen Mari lately?" Sara played, looking under the table and even behind Aidan, where the little girl was grinning widely. She had big brown eyes and curly dark hair just like her mother and older sister, today swept up in a messy ponytail from all the rambunctious activities of a typical two year old. After about ten seconds, she was giggling in all her toddler cuteness, and Nick laughed in pride.

"I'm right heeeere!" She finally announced.

"Oh, there you are, Mari!" Aidan swooped around and picked her up, kissing her cheek. He was a wonderful big brother, and Mari adored him.

CSI CSI CSI CSI CSI

"I miss you too, fuck wad." Mally cooed to her boyfriend, her language having changed slightly at college. She'd been away from her boyfriend for all of three days now, and she missed him like crazy. Mally had crushes and went on dates in high school, but had never had a serious boyfriend, much to Nick's delight. He'd been going crazy lately at the prospect of his daughter dating a college senior hundreds of miles away, unable to protect her from that overrated species known as college frat boys. Nick and Sara had met the punk once, and though no guy would ever be good enough for Mally, this one especially did not fit the criteria. Having been a frat boy himself, Nick knew how their screwed up, perverted minds worked and he didn't like to think of his daughter in such close proximity to even one. He knew Mally had a good head on her shoulders, but love could do crazy things to a person. That's how Mally had come along in the first place. Nick had become infatuated with her mother, but turned out to only end the steamy relationship after one month. Mally was born nine months later, and he'd never been the same since – he was a better person, and he didn't want some creep messing around with his first baby girl.

"Have you been thinking about me?"

How conceited, Mally thought, but she played along.

"All the time." She told him, half fibbing. Mally did think about him a lot, but she loved being around her family. She thought she heard her father come home over the music she'd been playing, but couldn't be sure. Aidan had turned his game down, so her dad was most likely down there. "Hey, I think dinner's ready, so I'm gonna have to say bye." Mally reported reluctantly, though they'd been talking about basically nothing for almost forty five minutes.

"Alright, sweetness. I'll think of you before I go to sleep. I love you."

"Mmm….bye." Mally quickly hung up. Jason had thrown the three letters out a week or so ago, and Mally hadn't responded, but he didn't seem to get the clue. She didn't love him…not yet. Her parents had taught her the true meaning of love, and that was a feeling she hadn't experienced with Jason. Sure, she felt lust and affection for him, but not love. She didn't say I love you without meaning it.

The almost twenty one year old huffed and rolled her eyes, getting off her bed in what she jokingly referred to as her high school bedroom of her summer home. It was true – she really only lived here in the summer, and on the occasional school break like right now.

Mally walked down the stairs to the sound of her family members in the kitchen. Mari had worked her way onto Aidan's back, who was playing around as her parents talked while her mother made dinner. It was a wonderful sight, and she missed it sometimes at college…sometimes.

Nick sensed his daughter coming and turned in his chair. It was Monday, and the first day he'd gotten to come home to all four of his children in a long time. He smiled widely as she came up behind Nick and wrapped her arms around his torso, snuggling her face against his.

"Good to see you, sweetheart." He patted her hand and turned his head to kiss her. Mally took the seat next to him, and he draped his arm at the back of her chair affectionately, and maybe a little possessively. He didn't get to see Mally every day now, so he truly cherished every moment with her. It killed him to have her gone, though she called often, but thankfully he had Sara, Bailey, Aidan, and Mari to help him through. They all missed her terribly too.

Half an hour later, Mally went upstairs to tell her sister she could come down for dinner. When she opened the door, she found Bailey jumping on her bed. The seven year old immediately stopped.

Mally gave her a curious look and decided to close the door.

"Aren't you a little old to be jumping on the bed?" She questioned her sister, trying to keep the tone light, because she knew Bailey was in trouble. Mally remembered how awful she would feel after being punished, and it wasn't a fun time. She tried to help out her siblings as much as possible. Not covering or making excuses for them, but trying to convince them not to do some of the crazy stuff kids got up to these days.

"I know. I just…feel like it sometimes." Bailey sat on her bed and sat pretzel style as Mally sat next to her. She was glad she had an older sister to get advice from. Basically, an adult, but not a parent – no fear of getting in trouble for asking the wrong questions. Why'd she have to abandon her?

"Why'd you think that is?" Mally asked gently, tucking a piece of her sister's hair behind her ear. She was so jealous of the twins when they were little, but now that they were older and could speak in clear, coherent sentences and carry on a conversation, they were actually pretty cool. And she loved Mari too, of course, with all her babbling sentence fragments. Mally had matured a lot in the last few years.

"I don't know, but mom, dad, and Miss Lorden are pretty mad at me. I think I annoy them a lot. I just can't pay attention."

"Bailey, you could never annoy them." Mally told her sister seriously. She knew what her sister meant, though. Sometimes they didn't understand why she did the things she did, but they still loved her unconditionally. Her parents' and teacher's concern was often confused with hate and resentment for the seven year old. "Sometimes, they may get angry when you misbehave, but they love you. Mom and dad could never stop loving you."

Mally knew this from experience. Though she was a good kid, Mally had gotten in her fair share of trouble over the years, from sneaking out to a party, to piercing her belly button without permission, and taking her friend's notes. Her parents always forgave her, and things were always patched up. They still loved her, no matter what.

"I know."

"And they'll get things worked out with your teacher. They all just want to help you. Maybe they can help you figure out why you can't concentrate."

Bailey offered a weak smile to her older sister, her idol. Mally always seemed to know exactly how to make her feel better. She missed her so much when she was away. Mally pretended to punch her sister in the face, and Bailey giggled. They got up and went downstairs together.

Sara was already serving the plates as the family assembled at the table. The parents were at opposite heads of the table. Mally and Bailey sat to their mother's left, and Mari and Aidan sat on the other side. Little Mari had recently graduated to a booster seat instead of the large, cumbersome high chair, and so she truly felt like a big kid now. She still sat close to her mother so Sara could help feed her.

The room was all abuzz with conversation as the happy family of six enjoyed a Monday night dinner in each other's company. Life seemed to be working out just fine for the Stokes.

A/N: Mari's name is pronounced MAH-ree. Thought you might want to know.