Another one-shot inspired by the recent weather here! I hope you enjoy! I appreciate your reviews!
The weather forecast had shown that thunderstorms were expected all night and into the next day. Night time had already fallen, and the pitter patter of drizzle had just been replaced with the full on force of raindrops beating against the windows and roof of the house. Everyone was already in their beds for the night, but the thunder and lightning didn't make it easy for some of the kids to fall asleep.
"Hey Callie, are you still awake?" Mariana whispered from her bed.
"Yeah, why?" Callie answered back, glad to be reminded that she wasn't alone in the room.
"I can't fall asleep now. It was okay when it was just drizzling, but now the rain is coming down hard, and I think I saw lightning". Mariana looked towards the window as she pulled the covers up to her chin.
"Yeah, I know what you mean" Callie admitted. She had always been afraid of thunder and lightning as a kid, but she couldn't let it show whenever Jude was afraid too. She had to be brave for him. "Jude…" she thought, remembering the days he would always close his eyes and cover his ears while she rubbed his back, just like their mom used to do for both of them.
"Um… I gotta check on Jude" Callie told Mariana as she hopped out of bed and started walking over to the door.
"But wait! You can't leave me here all alone Callie!" Mariana exclaimed.
"Then come with me. Maybe he will want to come back to our room. It's supposed to be like this all nigh-" Just then, lightning struck and the sound of thunder followed soon after, crackling and frightening the girls. Callie jumped up and Mariana slightly squealed, covering her mouth. The sound of their hearts beating rapidly could've been heard if it weren't raining so hard. Mariana quickly threw off the covers and joined her sister as they held each other's arms walking to Jude and Jesus' room.
Callie didn't knock. She knew she didn't have to, because it wouldn't be heard. She opened the door and found Jude pressed up against the corner of his bed and the wall with his eyes closed shut and his hands covering his ears, just like when he was younger. Jesus had fallen asleep and didn't notice the whimpering coming from Jude. Callie hurried over to his bed and placed her hand on his knee to let him know she was there. Mariana sat next to her as the next bit of lightning and thunder made all three of them jump. Jude opened his eyes to see both his sisters there, Callie with a concerned look on her face that was replaced by fear when the lightning and thunder struck.
"Hey baby" Callie spoke, trying to calm herself down as well. Jude uncovered his ears and scooted closer to Callie. She wrapped her arms around him.
"I really don't like the thunder and lightning Callie. Why does it have to be so loud?" Jude asked.
"I don't know Jude, but it's okay. I'm here. Look Mariana came too. Jude peeked around Callie to see Mariana sitting on his bed too. He smiled at her a bit, noticing that she was just as afraid as he was.
"Hey Judicorn" she smiled back. Both of their smiles quickly turned to fear when they heard a noise that sounded like thunder. It sounded closer, but it wasn't as loud. All three looked over to notice that Jesus let out a thunderous snore.
"Jesus!" Mariana whispered as she, Callie and Jude tried to not appear as startled as they were by his snoring.
"Oh, it was just a snore" Callie said, trying to calm down her siblings as well as herself.
"Welcome to my world" Jude piped up, now feeling a little calmer knowing his sisters came to check on him. Callie and Mariana both chuckled at Jude's comment. Even when they were all startled, he still managed to make them laugh. A flash of lightning soon followed after that.
"If you want, I can rub your back" Callie offered. Jude nodded his head and shifted his position so he was lying down. Another thunderous snore came from Jesus's side of the room, and Jude jolted up, startled.
"I'll wake him up" Mariana said as she headed towards that side of the room. She had also wanted some comfort from her brother, and the fact that he was sleeping while she was suffering was not okay. She shook his shoulder, knowing that calling his name wouldn't work.
"Hmm… knock it off" Jesus grumbled, still not realizing the increase in the number of people in his room.
"Jesus, come on. Your snore sounds like the thunder. Plus, I'm still scared" Thunder and lightning crackled, causing Mariana to jump as she shook Jesus's shoulder, and Callie to jolt in bed. She tried to recover. She was supposed to be brave for Jude.
"Callie, why don't we all get moms?" Jude asked, now knowing that his sister was afraid too.
"Well, it's kinda late Jude, I don't want to bother them, especially if they're sleeping" She replied.
"Plus it's embarrassing" Mariana chimed in, walking back over to Jude's bed, giving up on waking Jesus. "I mean, it's different when I was younger, but now I feel like I should be over this". Callie nodded her head in agreement, feeling the same way.
"You can come to our room if you want" Callie offered.
Jude smiled and nodded his head as they all got off the bed and headed towards the door. Jesus turned in bed and opened his eyes, seeing the gang walk out of the room. Lightning flashed, and thunder came soon after. He felt bad that he wasn't there for his sister. He remembered how afraid of thunder and lightning she was when she was younger, and he always felt the need to be close to her to help her feel better. He soon got up and headed towards the girls' room. He opened the door to find Callie and Jude on one bed, and Mariana clutching a stuffed animal on her bed.
"What are you doing in here?" Mariana asked, still a bit mad that he didn't wake up sooner.
"Um, I'm sorry I know you wanted me around you, but I didn't want to wake up. I overheard the end of your conversation about not being over thunder and lightning. I felt like I should be here for you" Thunder and lightning took a hold over the night sky. The rain wasn't letting up anytime soon either. Jesus sat on Mariana's bed and held her, as Callie did the same for Jude.
"…I never liked thunder and lightning as a kid either to be honest" Jesus admitted. Everyone in the room stared at him, curious about his confession. "I just knew I had to be brave for you. I was all you had". At those words, Jude looked up to Callie and squeezed her side. She looked down and smiled back at him, hugging him back tightly as she continued to rub his back.
"I think the reason I hate it was because of that time that it was raining hard and Jesus and I were hiding from our birth mom's boyfriend. He was really upset about something, and the thunder and lightning didn't help much either" Mariana admitted.
"I thought I heard multiple people talking in here" Brandon said as he walked in from the bathroom door. Brandon saw all his siblings curled up next to each other and knew that they were scared from the storm. Thunder rumbled, as Jude, Callie, and Mariana caught their breath.
"When Jude and I were younger and it was raining, he would cry while our mom rocked him and rub his back. I would always be hiding somewhere, and our mom would be searching for me. She would rub my back too to help me calm down, and she would tell me that everything was alright." "Gosh I miss that" Callie thought before continuing. "I guess I never got over my fear of lightning and thunder either" she admitted as she rubbed her nose.
"I think I used to run over to my mom and put my head underneath her shirt when I was scared of lightning" Brandon chimed in, leaning against the wall. All the siblings started chuckling.
"What? You guys told your stories without any judgement? Why do I get judged?"
"Not judging you bro, just a funny story" Jesus replied. After a moment of silence, lightning flashed brightly through the girls' bedroom window, and a crackle of thunder seemed to shake the house. Pretty much all of the kids let out some sort of scream or noise. They covered their mouths and looked around at each other, breathing heavily.
"At least we all have each other now" Jude piped up. "I like it that way". They all nodded their heads as they looked around at each other.
"And we'll always have each other" Brandon added with a smile. With that, everyone visibly relaxed.
"Oh, we thought we heard everyone up" Stef said as her and Lena popped up at the door way, looking around the room at all their children.
"Can't sleep? The storm?" Lena asked, concerned. Everyone around the room slowly nodded, looking back at them for answers as to what to do next.
"I mean, I know we could use the water since there's a drought, but it's like the sky is throwing a tantrum!" Stef asked jokingly, earning a couple of smiles and chuckles from the room. Lena and Stef looked at each other and smiled before Lena said "How about we all go and sleep downstairs together? Like a camp out indoors?" Everyone grabbed their pillows and blankets and claimed their spots downstairs. Stef and Lena headed to the kitchen as each of the kids were now wide awake.
"This is so much fun! I love it when we all camp out!" Jude exclaimed. Everyone was grateful that it was the weekend and that they didn't have school the next day. They started making conversation and chuckling. Stef and Lena soon emerged from the kitchen with mugs in their hands.
"We figured since it was raining, hot chocolate would help everyone" Stef commented.
"Mama, you're letting us drink this before bed?" Mariana asked, as everyone was curious as well.
"My mom used to give it to me when it was storming and I was scared" Lena admitted. "I figured it wouldn't be too bad if I passed on the tradition". Everyone sat around on their blankets and sleeping bags drinking hot chocolate and enjoying each other's company and chatting. They all soon forgot about the storm and hardly heard thunder or noticed the lightning.
"Alright my babies, let's all try and get some sleep now" Stef said as he got up to pick up everyone's mugs.
"I'll help too" Callie stated as she got up and started collecting some of the mugs.
Her and Stef took them to the kitchen and placed them in the sink. Callie looked out the window into the backyard. This was her first actual look at what the storm looked like, besides what it sounded like. She spotted a flash of lightning in the distance, and her fingers clenched against the sink.
"Hey love, it's alright" Stef comforted as she placed her arm around Callie's shoulder. "Let's go back in there and get some sleep, yes?"
Callie nodded, and the two of them headed back to the living room.
Mariana and Jesus were sleeping next to each other near one couch, and Brandon, Jude, and Lena were all huddled together near the other couch. Callie lay down her blanket in the middle of the room, somewhat in between the twins, and the other three huddled together. Stef followed afterwards, snuggling up to Callie. Callie didn't mind, especially since another crackle of thunder rolled in.
Stef felt Callie tense and whispered "Just relax sweets. It's okay, I got you". Stef then proceeded to rub Callie's back. It was just like when Callie was younger. She turned her head over so that she was facing Stef and smiled, tears forming in her eyes.
"What's the matter?" Stef whispered.
Callie shook her head. "Nothing. It's just… I miss this. No one has rubbed my back in a long time."
Stef smiled as she leaned in and kissed Callie's forehead. "Well get used to it bug. I always see you rubbing Jude's back, and I figured you would want some comfort too, ya know?"
"Yeah, but I was embarrassed to ask." Callie added.
"Don't worry, you don't have to ask anymore. I'll always be here for you love" Stef added. At that, Callie smiled and fell asleep with the comfort of everyone close by her. Stef stayed awake a bit longer, still rubbing small circles on Callie's back. She lifted her head up and looked around at her whole family asleep. With a smile, she rested her head down and drifted off.