Author's Note: Sorry about the wait to update! I should be getting back to a normal update schedule soon. Thank you for adding this to your favorites and alerts!
Also to the last reviewer, thank you so much for that sweet message! It means a lot to hear that!
This is a continuation of the last chapter so this one is going to be the start of a flashback. Hope you'll like the next chapter of the story!
Chapter 4: I'll Be There For You:
Lightning's eyes lowered to a close as her hand rubbed against her face. Even the water that was on her hand didn't seem to bother her. Nothing much could those days. She felt exhausted. Her body was begging her for sleep, but her mind was still active on what she had to do. Whatever strength she had was left to keep her awake. Nearby she could hear the sound of laughing and splashing water. She opened her eyes just enough to see Faith playing around in the water with a few toys surrounding her. Lightning gave a faint smile at her having fun. She reached over and grabbed a small washcloth. Gently, she rubbed it against Faith's face which made her face scrunch up. Afterwards she put the cloth off to the side and closed her eyes as Faith proceeded to play again. She couldn't remember the last time she slept for so little. Even missions that required her to stay up a few days and nights weren't this exhausting. Since night was upon them, it soon meant that Faith would be sleeping and so could she too, even for a few minutes, as long as there was nothing else to do.
"Hey. There are you," a familiar voice said from nearby.
Suddenly Lightning felt a pair of hands touch her shoulders. She didn't notice when the person came in. She kept her eyes closed knowing clearly the familiar voice. "Hey."
The silver haired man kneeled down beside the bathtub as Lightning was sitting further up on the edge of it. He reached his hand over which Faith moved over and grabbed it. "Hey to you too. Are you having fun in there?"
Faith smiled as she let go of his hand and played with one of her toys. "...Yeah!"
"Just as hyper as ever." Hope closed his eyes as he breathed out. "It's going to be fun trying to get her to sleep," he replied sarcastically as he smiled. He lifted his eyes toward Lightning. He looked a little surprised. She had her eyes closed as her head was leaning against the wall. "Light?"
"I'm still awake," she told him.
Hope sighed and stood up. Soon she opened her eyes once she felt a hand grab onto her arm. When she looked over, she saw a concerned look on Hope's face. "You look really tired. Go to bed. I can handle this."
Lightning sat up, leaning off of the wall. "I'm almost done here. After I put Faith to sleep, there are still a few things I have to do and then I'll sleep."
The concern never left from off his face. "Have you been sleeping at all?"
"A little," the words slipped from her lips. It was the first answer that came to mind, but she knew if she told him it would only worry him more.
His eyes lowered. "I can tell. Seriously go. I'll take care of everything."
Lightning gave him a serious look. "I can handle it. I'm fine. Besides you have to leave early tomorrow. The Academy has been keeping you busy with this latest project they're doing." Hope's eyes stared toward the floor. It was true that he had to spend longer hours there with a shorter time to stay home and help. Lightning relaxed. Her expression softened. "It will only be for a short time right? Then you'll be right back here. You can help out then. You look tired yourself."
Hope looked down at her. "I know, but I don't like that you have to handle this by yourself."
She gave a faint, tired smile for comfort. "Not so much. You're still helping." Even though she smiled, he still didn't like the fact that he wasn't helping as much as he wanted to and that she was pushing herself. Lightning sighed and closed her eyes. She would wait a few more minutes before doing what she needed to next.
Suddenly she felt her hand being grabbed. Lightning lifted her eyes surprised. Above her, there was a serious look on Hope's face. "You're not helping yourself by not getting any sleep. I can handle this. Go to sleep."
"I told you that I'm fine," Lightning tried to assure him.
He held her hand within both of his. "Please go. If you go now, I won't argue with you about this." He smiled a little. "At least not for a while." He had to be honest.
Lightning gave a faint smirk. "Trying anything you can to get rid of me?"
Hope smiled as he nodded. "Yes."
Lightning closed her eyes. She knew that she wouldn't hear the end of it. "Fine." She stood up deciding to give in. Her eyes traveled over to him. "But first let me find a towel for Faith. After that, she's all yours."
They headed out of the door. Hope smiled toward her. "Thank you."
While they were out of the room, Faith looked over curious as she stopped playing with her floating toys. Nearby she spotted a black cord near the edge. She reached over as best she could and managed to grab onto the cord. It was a struggle since the cord was plugged into the wall. She pulled at the cord more wondering what it was. More and more, the small hair dryer attached to the cord moved closer toward her.
"It's no big deal. I'm fine and I can handle this for a few more days while you're gone." On Lightning's arm, there was a blue towel for Faith. She looked over at Hope. "I don't need help."
"If you're sure," Hope replied. Even though he knew she could handle things, he still wanted to help.
Lightning looked forward. "Faith-." Instantly she stopped as her eyes narrowed. Hope had done the same thing. "Faith stop!" Lightning warned her as she raised her voice. They rushed over. She grabbed Faith from the water while Hope took away the hair dryer that she was pulling on. Lightning wrapped her arms around Faith with a hand on the back of her head. Like Hope, she was getting over her fear of what could have happened.
A few minutes later, Hope stepped into their bedroom where Lightning was sitting on the edge of the bed. She was staring toward the floor feeling uneasy. She didn't lift her eyes to him. "I didn't remember putting that there."
Hope sat down beside her. His hand rubbed against her back as he tried to comfort her. "It's all right. She's okay. We got there in time. Right now she's sleeping."
Lightning closed her eyes. Her mind still couldn't help but picture what could've happened. "Yeah, but something serious could have happened. She could have ended up in the hospital or worse."
"Hmm…" An idea came to Hope's mind. Soon he turned his attention back to Lightning. "There's no need to worry now. Let's get some sleep."
Lightning's eyes lowered. She wasn't sure if she could after what almost happened.
The next morning, the sun was shining through the window of their bedroom. Slowly Lightning opened her eyes. Beside her, she felt warmth as she was leaning against something smooth and hard. It was a familiar feeling. She lifted her head. Through her tiredness, she became surprised. "Hope? What are you still doing here?" Already he was awake with his head leaning on top of hers. After hearing her voice, his eyes traveled down to her. She leaned up on her elbow. "You're supposed to be at the Academy. You're already late."
He gave a small smile. "No I'm not."
Confusion became written on her face. "What are you talking about? I thought-."
Hope relaxed against her as he closed his eyes. "Not anymore. I called in today and said that I couldn't come in. I'll be working from home a few days. I'm perfectly capable of running things from here."
Lightning was surprised by the news he had given her. Shortly after getting over her surprise, a serious look came on her face. "You should go. You don't have to stay here just because of what happened."
He smiled down at her. "I thought that you would be happy to have me here." He sighed with his eyes closed. "I guess not…" He sat up from where he was laying.
"It's not that," Lightning replied. "If you're just staying here because you don't think I can handle-."
Hope kept his back turned from her. "It's not that I don't think you can handle things. I just don't want you to push yourself any harder. I don't want you to end up in a hospital."
Lightning leaned her head against her hand as her elbow pressed into the mattress. "It won't get that bad. I can take care of myself."
Hope smiled at her. "And I don't doubt that for a second either, but isn't it nice when you have someone else looking out of for you?" Lightning lowered her eyes toward the bed. She wasn't sure what answer she wanted to give. While she had liked to do some things on her own, she had to admit sometimes it was nice when he helped. Hope stood up. "Do you want anything while I'm up?"
Lightning took the covers from off of her body and proceeded to get up. "It's okay. I'll see what we have for breakfast."
Then she reacted surprised when she felt a hand on her shoulder. It felt as if she was going in reverse. Hope placed the covers back over her and guided her back down. There was a clear, caring smile on his face. "You aren't getting up just yet. You still have some sleep to catch up on. That was the point of me staying here."
"But I'm not tired," she told him.
"Whether you are now or not, take a few days for yourself. I can handle things from here on out," he assured her.
Lightning looked surprised. "You're going to do everything?"
Hope nodded. "Yes."
Lightning crossed her arms as she arched her eyebrow and leaned her back against her pillow sitting up a little. "And that includes feeding Faith?"
Nervously he smiled. He hadn't thought of that yet. "Well I might need your help for that seeing as she still gets her source of milk from you. Regardless, I'll take care of everything and you get to relax. By the time I go back to the Academy, you should be well rested."
Lightning thought about all the work that he would be doing at home and how it could it affect him. "But what about you? Won't you be tired?"
"I'll be fine. I won't fall far behind as long as I work here," he assured her.
Lightning felt a little uneasy about letting him take care of everything along with his work."If you say so. We'll see how much you can get done here."
"I'll be back soon." Afterwards Hope headed out of the door. Lightning sat in silence wondering if it was the best idea to let him take over. He could just as easily get exhausted as she was with taking care of Faith and other things around the house. Trusting that he could handle himself, she lied down on her side and closed her eyes. It didn't take long to fall right back asleep.
Time had slipped from underneath her. Suddenly she felt a slight shake on her body and a murmuring voice. As she began to regain consciousness, there were different aromas hitting her nose all at once. When she opened her eyes, she saw a tray of food in front of her with steam rolling off of the color filled plate. Surprised, she sat on her elbow. Her eyes traveled over to Hope sitting behind her. "You made breakfast?"
Hope gave a gentle smile. "Yeah. When I came back up here earlier, you were right back asleep so I waited a little. I can't let you sleep all day without eating anything."
Lightning grabbed a fork and took a bite. "How long was a little?"
Hope started to stand from the bed. "About an hour."
It made her a little surprised to hear that. She didn't even remember falling back asleep. Her eyes followed him as he walked around the bed. "I was asleep that long?"
"Yeah," Hope answered. It felt like a short time that she was asleep. Lightning sat up in her bed and placed the tray on her lap. When she lifted her eyes, she saw that Hope was heading toward the door. "You're not staying?"
Hope looked back at her and smiled. "It's your day off so you should relax." Afterwards he left from the room.
As Lightning continued eating in and listening to the television that she had on in the background, a sense of loneliness began to set in. She wasn't used to it being this quiet unless Faith was sleeping and Hope was at the Academy at the same time. Suddenly, she saw something slid in beside her. When she looked over toward the edge of the bed, she saw a flower. At first she became curious, but then looked further along the side of the bed on the floor. She saw the little messenger that had placed the flower there. A faint smile came on her lips and picked her up off of the ground. She sat Faith in front of her. "Where did you come from?" Soon, she lifted her eyes and looked toward the open door. She noticed something near the doorway. Outside of the door, Hope was kneeling down as he smiled. He gave himself a mental, happy yes for how well things worked out just like he planned. Lightning closed her eyes as she kept her smile on. "You can come out now. I know you're there."
Hope rose up and stepped in the doorway. "How did you know I was there?"
Lightning returned her attention to Faith and held up her arms playing with her a little. "Because I know that this one can't get up the stairs by herself."
Hope smiled and sat on the bed beside her. "I guess you caught me."
Lightning looked over at him. "What brings you two up here?"
"We wanted to keep you company before you took a break for the day," Hope replied.
Lightning's lips curved up into a smile. It seems that he read her feelings without a hint of knowing. When she looked over, she saw Faith reached over and grabbed a fist full of food. She placed her fist to her mouth as she started eating. Lightning wiped whatever was left on the side of her cheek as she smiled. "Who said that you could take food off of my plate?"
Hope looked at Faith as he smiled. "I just fed her not too long enough."
Lightning's eyes traveled over to Hope. "You must not have fed her enough."
Hope lifted his eyes to Lightning a little surprised. "You would be surprised with how much she ate. Almost as much as you have." Lightning became surprised too. She felt she had a plate big enough for an adult. Hope reached over and began eating off of her plate as well. She crossed her arms as she frowned a little. "And who said that you could eat off of my plate? Didn't have enough to eat either?"
He smiled. "It's not that. I just wanted to see your reaction."
Lightning let out a sigh. "I didn't even get a chance to eat half." Hope closed his eyes as he grinned. Lightning shook her head and returned her attention to Faith who was still eating. Regardless of how much they ate, it was nice having them there. They kept her company until she finished eating.
After a few minutes, Hope stood up from the bed. He held out his hands toward Faith. "Time to go. Let's let your mom rest."
Lightning lifted her eyes up to him. It felt like a short time of them staying with her. She didn't want him to leave because he felt he had to for her. "You don't have to go you know."
Hope smiled a little. "I know, but this is supposed to be your day off and I still have a lot of work to get done while I'm here."
Lightning noticed that Faith who was lying down beside her was starting to fall asleep. Her eyes were barely open. She turned her attention back to Hope. "You can leave her here. She looks like she's about to fall asleep anyway."
Hope nodded. "All right then. Sleep well." He leaned in and pressed a kiss against her cheek. Lightning watched as he left from the room. Afterwards, she lied down next to Faith. Like Faith, it didn't take long to fall back asleep.
Later when Lightning opened her eyes again, she saw that the golden glow from the sun through the window had turned orange. When she looked over at the clock, she realized that she had been asleep for hours. More than she expected to sleep. Maybe all of the things she was doing at home had worn her out more than she realized. Her eyes traveled down toward the bed and saw that Faith was gone. At first it concerned her since she didn't know what happened, but she figured that Hope must've taken her so that she could sleep peacefully. A few minutes later of lying down, a sudden smell had crossed over her nose. The scent seemed familiar, but she just couldn't place her finger on it. Whatever it was, it was calling out to her stomach and for that, she would find out what it was. She traveled downstairs and stepped into the kitchen. Confusion became written on her face. "What's going on here?"
Hope was standing near the stove as Faith was sitting on the counter beside him with a grin on her face. "Mommy!" She looked over at Hope as she pointed forward. "Daddy! Mommy here!"
Hope smiled at her before he looked back at Lightning. "Hey! You're awake. You slept for a long time. I actually thought that you were going to sleep for the rest of the day."
Lightning walked over and gently pressed her finger against Faith's forehead making it tilt back. In response, Faith let out a laugh. "And what are you up to?"
Hope's eyes traveled over to Faith. "She's helping me to cook. She actually volunteered to."
Lightning was a little surprised, but then another thought came to mind. She lifted her eyes to Hope."So no take out this time?"
Hope turned his attention back to the food cooking. "Well it's been a while since I've made anything and its best not to get rusty. Besides, I used to cook like this for us and myself even when we weren't living together."
Lightning crossed her arms as she leaned her back against the counter. "Right. I guess that was a part of your plan. Keep me here with you with food so that I wouldn't leave."
A laugh escaped from his lips. "This is something that I thought that you might like. Sit for a second."
Lightning listened and sat down at the table. Soon a bowl was placed in front of her with steam coming off of the beef and vegetables that were inside. Once she took a bite, she instantly reacted with surprise. "Whoa."
Hope sat Faith down in her chair with the food that he had for her. He sat down next to Lightning interested in getting her opinion. "So what do you think?"
She kept a little surprise leftover on her face. "It's… really good. What did you do to it?"
Hope smiled. "Just added something different to the recipe. You really like it?"
Lightning took another bite. "Yeah." Afterwards, she gave him a faint smile. "Maybe you should stay here and do all the house stuff while I take over the world Director."
Hope shook his head as he kept his smile on. "I don't know. I would be afraid for the world. It might turn into a dictatorship under you."
Lightning frowned and pushed him back in his chair with her hand on his chest. "I'm not that bad."
A small chuckle escaped from his lips. "I was just kidding you know. You could take over if you want and you would be good at it."
Lightning sighed with her eyes closed. "Probably not." Then she turned her eyes over to him. "I would have to learn everything that you do."
Hope leaned his elbow against the table as he smiled a little. "It's never too late to learn. I could teach you anything you want."
Lightning gave a slight smirk as his offer reminded her of something. "So instead of me being your teacher like before you would be mine?"
"I would think so," Hope answered.
Lightning poked him in the chest with her index finger. "Unlike you, I'll be able to pay attention and I don't expect any special treat Mr. Estheim."
Hope mirrored her faint smirk. "I wouldn't expect it any other way Ms. Farron."
"So? What's the first lesson?" Lightning asked, interested. Hope leaned in close to her face and kissed her lips. A sly smile came upon her lips. "I think I've already passed that. Is that all you have for me? Aren't you going to teach me about anything you do?"
Hope smiled as he looked up into her eyes. "Oh this isn't the lesson. You need a special acceptation into my class."
Lightning arched her eyebrow. "But I'm the only one in it. I thought that teachers and students were supposed to keep things professional."
Hope shrugged a little. "Technically the class hasn't begun yet so I just wanted to get a few things out of the way first."
Lightning leaned her arms against the table crossed as she kept her faint smirk on. "Getting it all of your system now aren't you?"
"It's going to be hard, but I think I can manage." They both leaned in and pressed their lips together in a sensual kiss. It became tempting to just skip over dinner and spend some time alone together until something reminded them that they couldn't just yet. Hope felt something soft hit the side of his face. When they looked over, they saw Faith making a mess of her food and spreading it everywhere around her. Hope looked over at Faith as he smiled nervously. "She sure knows how to make a mess."
Lightning leaned back in her chair as she placed her crossed arms against her stomach. "Well you told me not to do anything about it."
Hope looked over at her. "I got it. You should eat before your food gets cold." A faint smirk crossed his lips. "We'll discuss more about this later." Lightning gave a faint smirk at the thought and continued eating.
Later, Lightning was lying in bed as she had her eyes closed. During the night, she woke up. When she became in tune with her surroundings, she realized that she was sleeping alone. Her eyes traveled over to the clock on her desk. The clear red lines read 1:15. Her eyes lowered. The bed around her felt empty. She figured that Hope was working late because of all of the things that he had been helping with. She thought about checking on him and making sure that he wasn't overworking himself, but then decided that he could handle himself and hoped that he would return soon for sleep. After a few minutes, she drifted back to sleep. Sometime later, she felt something move beside her. Drowsy, she opened her eyes a little. Instantly her eyes read the clock that displayed 4:00. "Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you," a voice whispered beside her. Arms wrapped around her as a head leaned against her shoulder. Too tired to respond, she instinctively wrapped herself around the warmth that was pressing against her. She returned back into a deep sleep.
The next day, Lightning opened her eyes and saw that it was 12:29 in the afternoon. She was surprised by how long she slept again. She looked behind her and saw that the only person there was her. She wasn't sure if Hope had returned back last night or not. A few minutes later, she traveled downstairs and saw that Hope was typing on his computer as Faith was sitting on the floor playing a little with her toys. She seemed a little uninterested with them. Lightning picked her up from off the floor and sat down next to Hope as she placed Faith on her lap to sit. "What are you doing?"
Hope looked over surprised. "Light! I didn't see when you came in." He turned his attention back to his computer. "I'm just catching up on work from the Academy."
Lightning looked curious. "Did you sleep at all?"
He became a little surprised that she asked that. "Yeah. I thought I woke you when I came in last night."
When she thought back, all she could remember was sleeping. "I don't really remember."
Hope smiled a little. "You must've been out of it. I came in. Well it was early this morning."
Lightning thought about it a little more as her eyes drifted down. She did remember waking up a few times during the night. "I think I'm starting to remember. Wasn't it really late?"
Hope glanced at her before he looked over at his computer and started typing. "Yeah. I got in close to four in the morning."
Lightning was surprised to hear that. "That's really late for you and you're up now." Soon her expression changed to serious. "Are you sure you're getting enough sleep? I don't need you passing out."
Hope smiled to assure her. "Don't worry about me."
Lightning was still a little concerned over him. "I can take over from here." On her face, she showed how serious she was.
He placed his hand on top of hers. "No. I said that I would give you a few days and that's what I'm going to do. I don't want you to get tired as you have been."
Lightning let out a sigh as she closed her eyes. When she looked down, she saw that Faith was lying against her quietly with her head against her chest. Her eyes were closed as if she was sleeping. She became curious. "What did you do to tire this one out?"
Hope kept typing on his computer. "Nothing much. I've just been up with her all morning. She's been quiet a few times." Then he felt something lean against his shoulder. His eyes traveled over to see Lightning leaning her head against him. Things had turned silent between them. He wasn't sure if she was still tired herself, but continued to work in silence as she watched.
As morning came around the next day, Lightning opened her eyes to see the sunlight shining in through the room. When she looked over next to her, a smile came on her lips. Beside her sleeping was Faith in the center and Hope beside her. They were both lying the same way on their backs and arms up beside their heads. It was cute to see them sleeping the same way. Not wanting to wake them, she quietly slipped out of bed and left the room.
Outside, a loud shout escaped from Lightning as her gunblade collided with a thick wooden pole standing straight up. The metal had left a dent in the wood. Behind the house, she took the time to practice so that she could keep up her skills. As she was breathing hard, she leaned forward with her hands on her knees. "This is taking a lot more out of me than I thought," she thought. After catching her breath, she stood up straight and lifted her eyes a little toward the sky. "I guess when I stop doing this for three years and had Faith, it has slowed me down," she told herself in her mind. Once she felt she was rested enough, she rushed back toward the target as she got ready to attack.
Inside of his office within the house, Hope was sitting at his desk in front of his computer working. He rested the side of his head on the back of his hand as his eyes scanned across the screen. Behind him, Faith was sitting on the floor. Her small hand picked up a square block and looked at it. Uninterested, she put it back on the floor and then lifted her emerald eyes. As Hope had his attention on his computer, he suddenly felt something on his leg. When he lowered his eyes, he saw Faith staring at him with her hands on his leg. He gave a gentle smile and picked her up off of the ground. He placed her on his lap. "Hey!" His eyes traveled back toward the floor at her toys on the ground. "You've been quiet over there. It doesn't seem like you've played with your toys at all." With that observation, his mind started to get more lost in thought. His lips leaned against his curled index finger. "In fact, you seem like you haven't wanted to play with them since I've been home." He turned his attention back to Faith. "You don't want to play with them anymore?" Faith shook her head. Hope looked a little surprised. "Really?"
"No…!" Faith answered.
Hope's eyes drifted to the side toward the floor. "You are getting tired of them. It might be time for some new ones." He turned his head to her and smiled. "Would you like to get a new toy?" A grin came on Faith's lips. He noticed her reaction and grinned as well. "Would you like a new one? Something that you would really like?" Faith nodded several times as she kept her grin on. Hope placed his hand on top of her head. "Then we'll start looking for one." Faith clapped her hands together as she bounced a few times. She gave a huge smile. Watching her excitement had made Hope happy. Faith stood up and wrapped her arms as much as she could around his neck. Hope was surprised by her sudden reaction, but it didn't lessen his smile. "Wow! I didn't know it would make you this happy. What do you say?" Faith smiled at him and sat down on his leg. Hope looked down at her. "Thank…you…" he pronounced for her slowly.
Faith's eyes traveled down as she placed her fingers in her lips. "Tha-Thank… you…daddy..."
Hope smiled glad that she was able to catch on. It was helping her speech. "Good Faith." He turned his attention back to his computer. "We'll look for one right after I finish this." On his screen, he pulled up a map. His eyes scanned across the screen. "Now where was I? Right. I was looking for where the river was on this map." Faith pointed forward. Hope noticed and became surprised. "Faith? You know where the water is?" Faith stood up and placed her finger to the screen. She pointed to where the blue was. Hope was amazed. He wondered how she knew that. "Wow! That's right." A smile crossed his lips as Faith sat back down on his lap. "That was very impressive." He placed his hand on her head. "You're really smart. Keep it up and maybe one day you'll be a scientist working at the Academy."
Faith grinned. She placed her fingers into her mouth as she turned her attention back to the screen. She pointed toward the screen again. Hope leaned forward toward her as he smiled and kept his eyes to the screen. "What else do you see?" Faith began talking more. Most of the words she spoke he could understand. He grinned as he heard her speak. It didn't seem like too long ago when she couldn't speak at all, but now she was trying to lecture him on science. Her words were developing faster than he had expected. Mentally he noted it as something to speak with Lightning later about.
Later, things had turned quiet. Hope was still working on his computer. Against his stomach, Faith was sleeping. Slowly, she had tired herself out from spending time with him and drifted into sleep. While he was working, an alert sound came up on his computer. He became surprised, but then recognized what it was. He clicked on a icon on his computer and soon an older man with white hair came up on his computer in a window. His composure was businesslike and stern. "Hello Director."
Hope's expression had changed to serious and professional. "Hello executive."
"I hope that this is a good time for you. I informed your assistant that I needed to speak to you," the man spoke.
"Yes. He informed me a while ago that you would be calling. What can I do for you?" Hope wondered what the meeting was about.
The man looked serious as he began to get to the point of what he wanted to speak to Hope about. "We heard that you were spending a few days at home to work. We were wondering if it would be possible for you to come out to speak with my group and I soon. We wanted to discuss further about the project personally. There are a few things we would like explained."
As the two men spoke, Faith began to stir. Slowly she started to wake up hearing the sounds above her. Hope became curious. "Sure. Where did you plan on meeting and when?" Then, Hope looked a little surprised. Faith stood up on her feet in his chair.
The stern expression that seemed etched into the man's face had lifted and changed into surprise. He thought that Hope was alone. "Now who do we have here?" he asked interested.
Hope smiled as he looked over. "Sorry about that. I thought she was sleeping."
The man was curious. "It's all right. Who's this little one?"
Hope wrapped his arm around Faith who looked curious, but a little concerned about the stranger on the screen. "This is my daughter Faith."
The introduction surprised the man. "Really…? I didn't know that you had a daughter."
Hope smiled as he kept his eyes to Faith. "Yes." The man was still left stunned. Curiously, Faith leaned forward on the desk and poked her hand at the screen. She wondered where the mysterious man came from. Hope grinned silently and pulled Faith away. "Sorry about that."
The man watched as the two interacted with each other. They had seemed so natural and happy as a father and daughter. "It's all right."
Hope turned his attention back to the man in front of him. "So where did you want to meet?"
The man regained his businesslike composure, focusing on the reason he contacted Hope. "Right now my colleagues and I are not in Academia and we're not sure when we'll be able to travel back there. We were wondering if you could meet us in New Palumpolum."
Hope was surprised by the request. It was a far way off. "When were you planning on holding these meetings?"
"We were hoping that you could meet us two days from now." Hope's eyes traveled down as the man continued speaking. "We know that you want to get this project done as soon as possible. Will that be a problem?"
Hope lifted his eyes to the man after coming to a decision. "No. I'll meet you in New Palumpolum."
"We want to meet that morning if that's all right?" the man asked wondering if that would be a problem for him.
"That's fine," Hope replied.
The man gave a serious stare. "Then we look forward to seeing you. We'll send further details about where to meet later on."
"All right." Soon, the man on the screen disappeared. Hope closed his eyes as he let out a sigh. His eyes lowered to Faith and grabbed onto her small hands. He gave a smile of disappointment. "Sorry Faith. Looks like I won't be able to stay with you as long as I wanted to, but hopefully after this project is over, I'll be able to spend more time here." He breathed out as he leaned back in his chair with his eyes closed. He wanted to tell the man that he couldn't meet yet and to give himself more time at home since he told Lightning that he would stay for a few more days plus he liked staying at home, but he didn't want to risk losing business on the project he was working on. As he sat in silence, a thought crossed his mind. His eyes returned to Faith as he smiled a little. He wouldn't let this bring him down. "Hey! Let's get out of here. You must be as bored as I am sitting in here."
Later, Lightning stepped out of the bathroom into her bedroom. She rubbed a towel that was wrapped around her shoulders against her hair as she closed her eyes. She was already dressed shortly after her shower. Once she was done, she began to wonder where Hope and Faith were. She searched for them upstairs. She checked Faith's room and then Hope's office, but couldn't find them. Finally she headed downstairs.
In the living room, Hope was playing with Faith. "Ready?" He tossed her up into the air which she laughed and he caught her. Nearby, a smile formed on Lightning's lips as she watched them quietly. He lied back on the floor while still keeping her held up in the air. As she was laughing, she looked down at him. He placed her sitting on his stomach. Her fingers had touched his nose. Soon she lifted her eyes and looked surprised. She slid off of him and stood up. Hope was surprised to see her walking off without a word. Before he could ask, he heard Faith speak. "Mommy." He was surprised. Was Lightning already there?
Lightning kneeled down to Faith as Faith approached her. Lightning greeted her with a smile. She picked up Faith and walked over to Hope. Hope tilted his head back as he tried to see them. Lightning came over him. "Having fun down there?" Faith leaned forward which caused an idea to cross over Lightning's mind. She let Faith lean upside down as she looked Hope. The weird view of him had made her giggle. She reached down and touched his face.
As Hope had his attention on Faith, he spoke to Lightning. "I haven't seen you all day. When we woke up, you were gone." He sat up as Lightning sat down with Faith in front of him.
Her eyes met with his as she held onto Faith's arm. "I was just practicing fighting outside since it's been a while and I took a shower afterwards."
Hope smiled a little. The same thought crossed his mind from earlier. "I sort of have some bad news."
Lightning looked curious. He seemed disappointed about something. "What is it? Is there something wrong?"
"No. No. Nothing like that. I guess my stay here just got shortened. One of people funding the current project I'm working on called. He wants to meet with me personally in New Palumpolum in a few days," Hope explained.
Lightning was a little surprised. "Oh."
Hope's eyes lowered. "I know I said that I would stay with you and help out. Maybe I should-."
"It's okay." Lightning placed her hand on his shoulder comforting. His eyes lifted up to her. "I know how much you've been working on this and you don't need anything to ruin it. I appreciate what you've done to help around here, but you can go now."
Hope smiled a little. "You wouldn't have ruined it. I wanted to help you and it was nice being here with you guys. I wish I was here more often."
"I see. Being here hasn't driven you crazy yet," Lightning replied.
Hope smiled. "Of course not! It's been fun while I was here."
Lightning gave a faint smile. "That's good."
Hope relaxed a little. "For now, I just want to have fun here before I have to leave."
Lightning leaned against the couch as she looked interested. "What did you have in mind?"
Hope leaned in beside her. He lifted his eyes up as he was thinking. "I'm not sure yet." As Lightning watched him, an idea came to mind. She leaned in toward Faith who looked curious and whispered something. Hope noticed. "Hey. What are you saying to her?"
A faint smirk came to Lightning's lips as her eyes traveled over to him. "Nothing much."
Faith went over to him as she grinned and tried to tickle his stomach. Hope smiled at her. "What are you trying to do?"
Slightly, Lightning shook her head. "That's not the way you do it Faith. You have to try this way." Lightning reached over and poked his side.
Hope laughed a little. "Wait! Don't-." Lightning wouldn't stop. She continued to poke and tickle him as Faith joined in. Hope couldn't help but laugh. He fell down to the floor as Lightning and Faith pinned him down. "It's not fair! You two can't just team up on me!"
"We're allowed to." Lightning looked over at Faith. "Right Faith?" Faith grinned. As Hope kept laughing, Lightning couldn't help but smile. It was nice that they were having fun.
Later that night, Hope and Lightning were lying on their sides in front of each other in their bed. The only light that lit up the room was the light from the moon outside. They leaned in close letting their lips meet on and off. Neither one of them were in a rush to go to sleep right away. A smile appeared on his lips as she looked curious. "Shouldn't you be going to sleep by now?" she asked.
"Maybe in a few minutes, but for now…" Hope moved in and kissed her again. He leaned more toward her as she turned on her back. His lips moved from her cheek down to her neck. The ticklish feeling caused a smile to seep through her lips. It wasn't long before she felt his lips against her stomach.
Her eyes traveled down to him. "What are you doing?"
All he gave her was a smile. He placed a few kisses on her stomach before leaning over her again on his hands and knees. Before he could continue, they heard a familiar voice. "Mommy!"
Lightning breathed out. "Well at least she's calling for me now rather than crying for me." Playfully, she pushed Hope aside which his body dropped down on the bed. She sat up with her fingers on the edge of the bed. "Since she woke up, she must be getting scared of the dark again on her own. That's something she has to get over."
Hope leaned his head on his hand as his elbow was pressed into the mattress. "Why don't you bring her in here to sleep?"
Lightning crossed her arms as she looked at him. The way he acted toward her just a minute ago, she thought that he had something else on his mind. "Really?"
Hope smiled. "Sure. I don't mind."
Lightning decided not to question it any further and left from the room. A couple of minutes later she returned with Faith in her arms. She let her crawl on the bed where Hope was. Lightning looked down at her serious. "We're not letting you turn this into a habit."
Hope smiled at Lightning. "She's still young. I'm sure that it will be okay."
Lightning placed her hand on her hip. "You say that now, but just wait. She'll be sleeping in our bed until she's thirteen." Beside him, Hope felt as Faith curled up next to him with her eyes closed. He was a little surprised, but then smiled. He wrapped his arm around her. Lightning sat down next to them. "She calls for me to come get her and then she curls up next to you? I see how it is now."
Hope smiled as he looked up at Lightning. "Maybe she just likes me more," he joked.
Lightning lied down next to him. "Yeah right. I'm the one who's here all of the time."
Then a thought had crossed his mind. "Oh right! There was something that I wanted to mention to you earlier."
Lightning became curious. "What's that?"
He smiled as he thought back. "I have to say that I'm surprised with what happened today. I was working and looking over a map. I said out loud that I was looking for one of the rivers on it and Faith automatically points to it."
Lightning was surprised to learn that. "Really?"
"I didn't tell or show her where it was either. She just knew and then she started talking to me like she was trying to explain things to me," Hope told her.
Lightning looked down at Faith amazed. "I guess she is getting to be a little chatterbox."
Hope looked down at Faith as well. "She's picking up on things faster. I wonder how much. It would be nice to tell how smart she is right now."
Lightning glanced at Faith before she lifted her eyes to Hope. "What? You think that she could be a little genius?"
He looked over at her with a hopeful smile. "It is possible."
Lightning thought about it for a little. "It would be a little surprising, but not so much when you think about it. She could've gotten her smarts from you."
"And from you as well. What you teach her builds on the foundation of how she will learn. Maybe you taught her more than you realize and in result, that's increasing her intelligence," Hope explained. Lightning gave a faint smile. It sounded like he was commending her on Faith getting smarter. As he looked over at Lightning, he gently smiled. "This is nice having all three of us here together." A gentle smile appeared on Lightning. It seemed that he was happier having his family there than it just being the two of them.
The next day, Hope headed toward the door with suitcases in hand. He sat them down on the floor and turned as he smiled toward the two following behind him. "I'm off. I better catch the ship before it takes off. I wished that I could've stayed longer."
"It's okay. It was nice having you around for a few days." Lightning turned her attention to Faith. "Right?" Faith just looked at her curious.
Hope smiled. "I guess I'll just take that as a yes."
Lightning placed her hand on her hip as she gave him a serious look. "Just make sure to call so I know you're still alive."
Hope grinned at the way she said it. He leaned in and pressed his lips against Lightning's. As the two kissed, Faith watched as she seemed curious. Her fingers reached over and poked his cheek. He laughed a little at the ticklish sensation. Once he separated from Lightning, he placed his hand on the back of Faith's head and tilted her head a little. He placed a quick kiss on her forehead. Afterwards, he smiled. "I will let you know when I make it there. Alive. I'll be back in a few days. See you then."
Lightning and Faith watched as he left. "Bye." Lightning leaned her hand on the door and closed it. She soon turned her attention to Faith who looked at her. "I guess it's just us again."
As sunset came upon the city of New Palumpolum, Hope checked into his hotel room and went inside of the room that he had. It had a set up with a big bed, television, and other things to make him comfortable. He looked around before he sat down on his bed. He did as Lightning asked and called to let her know that he had made it safely. It wasn't long before night came around and he had settled in tired from the hours of traveling.
Thank you for reading! I'll be back to update!
