Disclaimer: I don't own Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew or and characters associated with them. Unless I created them, cuz those are totally mine.
A/N: OK, I know I said that Vanessa and Joe lived in a apartment, but now they live in a small townhouse. Who knows, maybe they moved after Alexis was born.
Thanks for all the feedback on the last chapter! I'm glad everyone liked it.
I hope you like this:
A loud cry broke though the night, startling Joe enough to fall out of bed.
He wiped his eyes and glanced at the clock, where the glowing red numbers told him that it was just after 2 a.m.
"Are you kidding?" Joe grumbled, getting up and walking into Alexis' room.
Joe gently picked the baby up from the crib, and sat down in the rocking chair in the corner of the yellow room.
"You know, I would say 'Good morning, Princess', but you technically can't say that until you've actually gone to sleep. Which you haven't really let me do," Joe murmured to the baby.
Alexis' crys slowly stopped, and she raised her tiny fist in the air.
"I suppose I should check your diaper now," Joe sighed. "Because it certainly smells like you need a change. OR, we could go and tell Mommy that you're hungry, and have her discover this all on her own. She, somehow, has slept through all of your tears, while I have gotten up the past four times. Yeah, it's really been that many."
Joe slowly got up and carried Alexis' into Joe and Vanessa's bedroom.
"Vanessa, wake up," he said, holding Alexis tightly with one arm, and shaking his wife with the other.
"What?" Vanessa said, getting up. "Is she hungry?" Joe looked at her.
"How did you sleep through that?" he asked. Vanessa looked sheepish as she pulled something from her ears.
"Earplugs?" Joe asked in disbelief.
"Oh, my God! I'm a horrible mother! I haven't got any sleep in like three months, and I wasn't thinking, and I seriously had the best sleep I've had in a long time just now, but I didn't hear my own baby! She could have been on fire and I wouldn't have even opened my eyes!" Vanessa cried, taking the baby from Joe.
"You are not a horrible mother. But think about it Van, I haven't got any sleep either!!" he exclaimed, sitting down beside her.
"You've gotten more than me! You sleep through 2 out of three midnight changing/feedings/cuddlings," Vanessa said, holding the baby close to her chest.
"I do?" Joe asked. Vanessa nodded.
"I've never seen anyone sleep so soundly," she added.
"Funny, Frank tells me the same thing," Joe said, smiling.
"Well, your brother speaks the truth," Vanessa said, finishing up with Alexis.
"I'll be sure to tell him that, he really needs an ego boost. I heard Nancy beat him twenty-eight times at Go, Fish," Joe laughed.
Vanessa giggled before scrunching up her nose.
"I think she needs a diaper change," Vanessa said, handing her to Joe.
Joe sighed.
"I should have known our plan wouldn't work," he whispered to Alex.
--
"Nooooooo! No! No! NO!" Joe moaned, slapping his alarm clock several times.
"It cannot possibly be seven already," Vanessa said, rolling over.
"You're right. It's not seven. Let's go back to sleep and sue the alarm clock company in the morning," Joe grumbled, wrapping an arm over Vanessa.
Just as they had gotten comfortable, a loud shriek echoed through the baby monitor.
"Nooooooo!" Vanessa groaned. "Something is seriously wrong with that girl's internal clock!"
"We'll sue her, too," Joe grumbled, holding Vanessa tighter to him.
"No, we gotta get up!" Vanessa said, pulling herself up.
"No!" Joe said, pulling the pillow over his head. Vanessa almost laughed at the clock, red numbers proclaiming seven thirty.
Vanessa put her hands on her hips when an idea suddenly came to her.
She bent down, until her lips were touching Joe's ear.
"GET UP!" she shrieked, jumping back as Joe shot up in bed
"WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Joe exclaimed
"Oh, honey! You're up! Would you mind helping me get Alexis ready?" Vanessa asked sweetly.
"You are an evil, evil person!" Joe grumbled, shoving the covers aside.
"You know you love me for it!" Vanessa called as she made her way down the hall.
When Joe finally staggered into Alexis' room, Vanessa was already positioned at the changing table, murmuring to her daughter.
"Honey, you know I'm thankful that you don't sleep like your father, but it would be nice if you got up at a normal person time," Vanessa said, disposing of the dirty diaper.
"Daddy would be so happy, he'd buy you a car," Joe yawned.
"Oh, yes. That would be smart. Buying a car sixteen years in advance," Vanessa said sarcastically.
"Technically, it would only be fifteen year, eight months and twenty eight days," Joe said as Vanessa settled in the rocking chair with Alexis.
"You would think she'd full, but no, she eats like her father," Vanessa laughed.
"You should be mighty proud," Joe smiled.
"Oh, I am," Vanessa said.
"Well, I'll let you two finish up," Joe said. "And no, I am not going back to bed. I'm going to make breakfast."
"OK," Vanessa said.
"Any suggestions?" Joe asked.
"Anything's fine," Vanessa shrugged, to the displeasure of Alexis.
Joe hid a smile as he began to walk towards the kitchen, and did a mental countdown.
"But Alexis would really love some French toast!" Vanessa called after him.
Joe laughed. "She doesn't have any teeth!"
"Yeah, but I think the delicious smell of the French toast will lure out her teeth!" Vanessa said. "And then I won't have to do this ten times a day!"
--
"I am so glad its Saturday," Vanessa said, sitting next to Joe, who was playing with Alexis on the couch. Well, he was playing, and Alexis was watching.
"Why?" Joe asked, pulling the Barbie out of Alexis' reach before she could grab the hair.
"Because," Vanessa said mysteriously. "You can watch Alexis, while Nancy and I go shopping!"
"That's not fair!" Joe cried, placing Alexis in the (as he referred to it) 'hanging-bouncy chair thing'.
"How is it unfair?" Vanessa asked.
"I don't know, it just seems like the appropriate answer," Joe shrugged.
Vanessa laughed. "So what are you guys doing?"
"Well, it's a long story," Joe said, turning pink.
"Joe…" Vanessa said, giving him a look. Joe sighed.
'Well, you see, somebody has been going around killing people, and then they killed Ken- but we haven't gotten to that part yet- so Barbie enlists Theresa to help find out who killed her boyfriend. It turns out it was Theresa the whole time. She was jealous that Barbie got the guy, so she decided if she couldn't have him, no one would," he blurted.
"Oh, my God! You're playing Barbie detective!" Vanessa laughed.
"Shut up!" Joe mumbled.
Vanessa just kept laughing.
"I'm teaching our daughter feminism!" Joe insisted. "Barbie is enlisting the help of another female, and together, without the help of males, they, well, Barbie, solves the case and earns fame all on they're own! It's a good lesson for her! She doesn't need any males! Especially boyfriends! Girl power, baby!" He looked at his daughter at this last part.
"She doesn't understand any of that! You just like playing with them!" Vanessa giggled.
"You won't tell anybody, will you?" Joe asked worriedly. Vanessa wiped her eyes.
"I won't, promise. Well, except maybe Nancy…" Vanessa said, her eyes twinkling mischievously.
"Nancy? You don't mean my possible-future-sister- in law Nancy? My brother's girlfriend-who-will-tell-him-anything Nancy?" Joe asked, horrified.
"That's the one. But don't worry, Joe. I'm sure they won't tease you for more than ten years," Vanessa giggled, planting kisses on both Joe and Alexis' foreheads.
Vanessa could hear Joe grumbling for a moment before he suddenly switched to a high pitched voice.
"Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!"
--
"…And as I left the room, all I could hear was "Oh, my God! They killed Kenny!'" Vanessa laughed and Nancy doubled over.
"Oh, you really married quite the character," she said, wiping her eyes. Vanessa nodded.
"Hey, speaking of marriage, what's going on with you and Frank? Has he popped the question yet?" Vanessa asked, taking a bite of her frozen yogurt.
"I don't know. We've been dating for four years, we live together, we love each other, but sometimes I think Frank will never propose," Nancy sighed, playing with her own dessert.
"God. That boy is slow. He's been in love with you for what? Six years? More? He obviously wants to spend the rest of his life with you. That little commitment-phobe," Vanessa said. "I wished he'd hurry up. I can't wait to be sisters-in-law."
"Aw. That's sweet, but the way things are going, by the time we're sisters-in-law, a cat will be president and we'll all be living on the moon- save the underwater colonies," Nancy sighed. "That cat better give me a medal for being so patient.
"Hey, if he doesn't, I will," Vanessa laughed. "It must be a family thing though. It took Joe ages to propose to me."
"Hey! You can't talk! The point is that you're married NOW, and you have a baby. Therefore, you win. Just don't tell that to Joe; he loves winning," Nancy grumbled.
"Don't I know it," Vanessa muttered. 'But don't worry, Nance. If Frank doesn't propose soon, I'll pressure Joe into pressuring him into doing it."
"I want Frank to propose because he loves me, not because you forced him to," Nancy said.
"No, Joe would. I don't want to get on Frank's bad side," Vanessa shuddered. "And Nancy, here is a little piece of information that may shock you. Frank doesn't love you, he's obsessed with you. He can't go five minutes without saying something about you. And that was even before you got together. You should have seen the look Callie got on her face when Frank talked about you. Oh, my God! Callie!"
"What? What about Callie?" Nancy asked.
"Oh, she's going to hate me! I completely forgot to tell her I have a baby, let alone the fact that I was pregnant!" Vanessa cried.
"Where is Callie?" Nancy asked.
"When you and Frank moved in together, she moved to Connecticut. She said she wouldn't be able to handle seeing you two together. Even though she broke up with him," Vanessa said distractedly, punching in a number on her cell-phone.
"Hi, Callie," Vanessa cringed. Nancy could hear Callie's bubbly voice come through the phone-line.
"Callie, I have something to tell you, and it might make you hate me," Vanessa said. "I-I had a baby. About three months ago. I'm so sorry! With everything going on, I just forgot to tell you!"
Nancy could hear Callie though the phone still, even though the brightness in her voice had disappeared.
"You don't hate me, do you?" Vanessa asked. Callie's voice was once again cheerful. "Oh, thank God! Yeah, her name is Alexis Iola Hardy, she has blond hair, impossibly blue eyes…and you're one of the God-mothers!"
Nancy eyed Vanessa. Not only was she one of Alexis' God-mothers, but so was Laura, Andrea and now Callie. She just kept sticking on new ones, as Joe did God-fathers. They really were perfect for each other.
"And you know what else? Frank and Nancy are getting married!"
Nancy bugged her eyes out, and made hand gestures, while Vanessa just focused on the phone.
"I'm sorry; Cal, but they really do love each other. OK, I'll talk to you later. Bye," Vanessa said, shutting her phone.
"Why did you say that?!" Nancy blurted.
"Because I had to make her less mad at me!" Vanessa cried.
--
As Nancy turned onto Vanessa's street, the sound of her pounding heart filled her ears.
Surrounding the house was at least a dozen police cars.
Flashbacks of several unfamiliar houses, surrounded by police cars filled her mind.
Nancy heard Vanessa gasp and sped down the street.
Both women jumped out of the car and scurried towards the house, running through the open door.
The sight before them was relieving, but scary none of the less.
The front window was smashed, and the furniture was all knocked over, Barbie's lying with they're heads pulled off.
Before a word was even said, Vanessa rushed over to Joe, who was cradling a crying Alexis (who looked perfectly fine) and sporting a black eye.
"Someone broke in," was all he said before he pulled Vanessa into a hug.
A/N: Well?
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