November

The turkey was cooking…and so were the ginger carrots, mashed potatoes, and creamed corn. From my vantage point, leaning against the counter with my back turned to the adjoining dining room, I could see my dad and Shyla fighting over how to properly cut the turkey. Hana looked at them and shook her head before putting Knight and Taylor to work helping her find a dish for the stuffing. The bread crumb concoction looked wonderful, and I grinned, just thinking about eating it all.

Two arms wrapped around me from behind and Warren's recently scratchy chin rubbed against my cheek. I turned my head up to look at him, leaning into his chest as the chaos in the kitchen continued on unabated. It was the first time we were all celebrating together, having invited Warren and his mom over to share the holiday meal. Somehow we felt more complete than before, like we'd been missing them all along.

"Lucky there haven't been any calls," I volunteered to Warren after a moment, "I heard Will's parents have been called out on holidays before."

"That would suck," Warren replied, deep voice rumbling in my ear.

I smirked at the familiar phrase. There was something so entirely right about standing there in his arms and I couldn't help but soak it in. We'd been through so much in the short year and a half we'd known each other. Now that we were both graduated from Sky High things were finally looking up- despite the odd supervillian and mutated monster that stumbled across our path.

"Lydia, could you go get Emma?" Shyla asked, turning, red-faced, away from the turkey confrontation, "I think I heard her crying through the monitor."

I nodded and pulled away from Warren reluctantly, walking back towards the room where the newest member of our family had been sleeping. Hearing the first tell-tale squeals from inside, I pushed the door open and headed through the darkness to the crib. Two tiny red eyes looked up at me and the noises stopped briefly. Sticking her fist halfway in her mouth, Emma gurgled. I grinned and picked her up, swaying slightly as I rubbed circles on her back.

"You look good with her," Warren said as he leaned against the doorway with a familiar grin. It was the slight smirk he used when he wanted to say something serious but still seem like he was joking.

"Don't even start the baby thing again," I replied, sounding more joking than I'd meant.

Warren stepped inside the room, taking a seat in Shyla's rocking chair. It was silent and I knew he was thinking about how to broach the topic without causing an argument. He'd become much more clever about these clashes. We hardly ever had the yelling contests that had plagued our on-again off-again high school relationship.

"You don't want to marry me," he stated instead of asking, looking up at me with a straight face.

"It's not that Warr-"

"Then you will marry me?"

I sighed heavily and closed my eyes a moment, "I'm only nineteen…barely."

"We're heroes Lydia- things work a little differently," his voice was becoming slightly more irritated but I was immune to it, I'd heard it all before. "Heroes don't know-"

"What will happen or when they'll be gone," I finished for him.

Warren sighed, sensing that I wasn't going to budge. "I'm not going to wait forever Lydia," he said and left the room.

I watched the rocking chair tip back and forth. There was little to do now but let him cool off. We'd had many of these 'discussions' in the past couple of weeks. I wasn't sure why he was suddenly so intent on marriage- after all he didn't exactly strike me as the type to want that big of a commitment so soon. Of course, he'd never struck me as someone I'd end up loving either…

000000000

December

"Maybe he's finally figured out you just aren't going to leave," Layla volunteered, waving a hand in the air. Her superhero boots crunched over the icy road as the Maiden Force walked up the alley together.

"That or he just wants a good reason to keep you home and out of dangerous situations," Magenta rebutted with a sarcastic smirk.

"Maybe," I answered to both with a shrug. "It's just weird to be so stuck on it…he talks to me about it almost every day and I'm get-"

"You're lucky to have someone who wants commitment," Quincy suddenly interrupted, scowling, "You know there aren't many guys like that and it's pathetic he has to almost beg for you to think about it seriously."

We were all silent.

"Taylor cheat on you again?" Magenta finally asked before Layla or I could shhhh her.

"I'm picking up some movement on the north side of the factory," Layla offered.

I let out a sigh and glanced over at the scanner she was holding. "There's supposed to be some possibility of explosives right? I could go check out things before we move in."

They nodded and I gave them a brief smile before freezing time and starting towards the looming factory building. I jogged around to the north side of the main building, immediately spotting the frozen group of men. They weren't moving but I still approached cautiously. There'd been more than one time when I'd had to deal with villains that could resist my powers.

The four masked faces of the men were all turned down towards a device that looked like it might be able to take out the entire factory easily once detonated. I sighed and picked the bomb off cautiously. The frozen time made most explosives far less dangerous to handle than they would be normally.

"But what do I do with it," I muttered to myself, looking around. Slowly I headed back towards the girls, examining the black box. It looked remarkably cliché, complete with a red flashing timer counting down from ten.

Nine…eight…

I froze.

It was still counting down.

I had enough time to let go of my hold and reach backwards, pulling myself and the device through time to moments before when I'd first run over to the men. Sweat dripped from the inside of my mask and into my eyes as I looked down at the counter again.

Six...five…four

Frantically I pulled backwards further as the dial kept counting down. I arrived at the empty lot I'd been in before meeting up with the girls. It would have to do. I set the bomb down and ran even as I sped up time, trying to escape in the last two seconds left to me. It wasn't enough time, but I tried tricking myself into thinking it was. There was no way I was going to die…I couldn't yet? Right?

The noise hit my ears before my body was flung into the air.

000000000

Two hours later

He sat there, holding onto my hand, waiting for me to say something. It was hard to think clearly who knows what running from the IV pouch into my system. I swallowed back the dryness in my throat and wet my lips. I knew the situation was bad just by the look on Warren's face. The rest of my family had scattered from the room as soon as he'd been able to come in.

All because of a stupid time-resistant bomb circuit.

"Sorry," I offered hoarsely, trying to tense my fingers around his; that much I could manage, though moving my arm was a different story.

"Sorry?" he repeated with a raised eyebrow, "I'm about done with sorry Lydia. We're getting married."

"What?" I asked, wondering whether the drugs had just induced an imaginary proposal.

"Tonight."

It was my turn to raise an eyebrow. This all had to be a very strange dream.

"You were almost killed, you know how long it took for them to let me in? If there wasn't a neutralizing field at the main desk they would have been looking through burnt paperwork for weeks."

I must have looked confused because he continued, hand growing hot as the words poured out.

"I'm not family- don't you get it? Until we're married you could die and I'd just have to sit outside in the waiting room along with all the whining kids and griping mothers. I'm not doing that Lydia, not ever again."

I was silent, trying to really think over what he'd said reasonably. With the drugs and exhaustion, that was hard. A nurse poked her head in, probably worried about Warren's raised voice. He shot her a glare and her head disappeared again, probably already having witnessed his temper. I was feeling it myself and released the hand, palm flushed from the contact.

"Warren we can't just go and get married tonight."

I could see the heated battle ahead and he moved to stand up.

"I don't even have a dress," I added, trying to smirk.

He sat, suddenly consolatory, "Is that a yes?"

"As close a one as you're going to get for that stupid proposal."

The nurse peeked in again, looking as meek as possible as she stepped into the room to fiddle with the IV again. "Um," she began, pushing up her glasses and glancing at Warren out of her peripherals, "Sir, you'll have to leave now, the patient w-will have to get some rest."

"You're right," Warren replied, standing up and throwing the nurse a genuine smile, the kind that melted my heart and sent its gooey remains sticking to everything inside. "She has a wedding to plan for- wouldn't want her to be tired."

The nurse smiled back, looking a little stunned and I shook my head, "Out you."

Warren grinned and left, grabbing his jacket from the seat by the door as he passed.

AN: There it is! Hope it's up to everyone's expectations. I decided to go in chronological order for these so the next one will probably be about their wedding :) Let me know what you think!