My day went by slowly, me handing back tests and going over new material before packing up for the end of the day. The walk home was quite and cold and I found myself missing Murphy's warmth and conversation. When I got home I made a quick sandwich before practicing my violin. While I was playing I couldn't help but think about Thursday night. I was really excited to have the boys over again and was looking forward to finally getting to cook more. I hadn't cooked a lot since my grandfather passed away. I would cook when Maggie asked me to or when she'd come over for the holidays but other than that I'd just sort of let it go.

There was a knock at the door causing me to frown. I hadn't planned to have anyone over, and the post is never this late either. I sat my violin down before making my way to the front door. I leaned down and opened the post slot,

"Who is it?"

"It's Connor lass." Quickly, I stood back up and unlocked the door. I was greeted by a cold blast of air,

"Connor, wha' are ya doin' here?"

"Can I get outta da cold firs'?"

"Of course! Come in." I felt him brush past me before I closed the door,

"Thanks lass."

"What's wrong? Is it Murphy? Did somethin' happen?" He chuckled,

"No nothin's wrong with that git. He's fine." I let out relieved sigh causing him to chuckle more, "If I didn't know any better I'd say ya had a thin' for me brother." I felt my cheeks burn. He laughed, "I'm jus' teasin' ya lass… mostly." I swatted him in the arm,

"Hush." I moved past him and went back to my violin. By the sound of his boots I knew he was following me, "So what brin's ya here then?"

"Jus' wanted to check on ya." I shot him a look,

"Really? Somehow I jus' don't believe tha'. Now, why are ya really here?" I felt him sit down next to me with a heavy sigh, "Wow, tha' serious is it?" He paused for a moment,

"Murph… Murph told me… 'bout wha' happened." I sighed before setting my violin down. I knew that he would tell him. I told him he could tell him. I also knew that it would come up eventually.

"Knew this would come up at some point. Jus' didn't think it'd be this soon." Gently he grasped my hand,

"Thought it'd be best not to prolong it. I jus' care about ya lass."

"I know. Look, I'm… I'm not all put togethe'. There's more… I couldn't tell 'im all of it." He squeezed my and before wrapping his free arm around my shoulders,

"But ya got the biggest obstacle outta the way , an' ya shared tha' experience with someone. With us. I know ya didn't actually tell me, bu' I'm still honored tha' ya chose me to share it with. An' I know Murph feels the same way. We wanna help ya lass, in whatever way we can. Ya one of the family now. Me brother, he cares abou' ya. A lot." Tears welled in my eyes as I hugged him tightly,

"Thank you Connor… that means more to me than ya know." He held me tighter and kissed the top of my head,

"You're welcome lass." A moment or two of comfortable silence passed over us as I collected myself before Connor said something, "And by the by, wha' exactly are we havin' for dinner Thursday?" I laughed as I sat up and wiped at my eyes. I could hear him chuckle, knowing he had said it more for my benefit then anything.

"I was thinking of making a Shepherd's pie. How does tha' sound?"

"Mmm, tha' sounds wonderful lass. Simply wonderful." We carried on talking for a bit before Connor had to leave,

"Can't let Murph worry his head off." I chuckled as he gave me a hug,

"I'll see ya both Thursday." He kissed my head as he opened the door,

"See ya Thursday lass." After he left I couldn't help but feel a bit lonely. I went back to my violin and went over the conversation I had had with Connor. He said Murphy cared about me a lot and had teased me about having a thing for him. The more I thought about it the more I began to wonder if Murphy felt the same way about me. I mean, obviously there was some sort of connection between us but how far did it go? Could he feel as deeply for me as I did for him? I hadn't thought about dating again, let alone loving anyone, in a long time. I didn't even think I knew how to anymore.

But the other thing, the big thing, that Connor had said that got to me was when he called me part of the family. I felt close to the brothers, closer than I felt with any other person except Maggie. But to actually hear someone say that I was a part of their family, it broke me a little. Not in a bad way, a good way. It made me feel loved, and reminded me that someone cared about me. That someone cared about my wellbeing and about what happened to me. These two were determined to continue chipping away at all my barriers. And you know what, I didn't mind. Sure there were some things that I didn't want to tell them yet, mostly because they were still painful to talk about but I knew I would tell them some day. And I was okay with that, I was okay with telling them the big stuff. The stuff that hurt to remember and brought back painful memories. I wanted to share it with them. I trusted them, plain and simple. As I put my violin away and got ready for bed I couldn't help but smile, I wasn't alone anymore.

When Thursday came around, the day couldn't end fast enough. It was my last class and there was only about fifteen minutes left from the sound of things out in the hall. I was excited for my trip to the market with the boys and had to try really hard to focus on teaching.

The boys decided to surprise Chris and had showed up to the school early with the intent of picking her up and getting to see where she worked. As the two approached the front desk the receptionist eyed them curiously.

"May I help you gentlemen?" The boys smiled warmly at her,

"Good afternoon ma'am, we're 'ere to see Miss Christian Doyle." Shock was the first thing that registered on the older woman's face before a tender look crossed her face,

"You two must be the MacManus brothers she spoke so fondly about." This caused the boys grins to widen,

"Yes ma'am that's us."

"Well currently she has a class but it should be over in ten minutes or so."

"If it's not too much trouble could we see 'er? We'd like to surprise if that's alrigh'." The two put on their most charming smiles and in no time at all she caved,

"Well I guess it wouldn't be too much of a problem. Let me get someone to walk you down to her room." The woman bustled into the main office for a minute or two, the whole while Murphy tapped his fingers impatiently against his coat causing his brother to chuckle,

"Easy Murph, you'll see the lass soon enough." H before shot his brother a look,

"I know, I jus'-"

"I know." He grinned at Murphy, "You're like a schoolboy who fancies his teacher." The irony was not on the brother as he scowled at him but before he could swear at him and cuff him upside the head the receptionist returned with a man in his mid to late thirties,

"This is Mr. Winchester, he teaches high school math and science."

"And the head of the math department." The man was of average height and build with dull brown hair and eyes, glasses, and a three piece suite that consisted of a white dress shirt, brown waistcoat, a matching suite jacket and slacks, and brown shoes. The boys held their hands out,

"It's a pleasure." The man eyes their hands and gave them a once over before plastering on a fake smile and shaking them,

"Yes, well, follow me then." The boys turned to the receptionist and nodded their hands,

"Much obliged." She shook her head with a smile,

"It was wonderful to meet you boys." As the three walked down the long hallway it became clear that in the eyes of Mr. Winchester the boys were nothing but common street trash.

"So, how do you two know Miss Doyle?" Connor spoke first,

"She's a dear friend of ours."

"Really? How on earth did you meet?" The barely disguised disgust made Murphy clench his jaw,

"Like most people do through circumstances and such." The man raised an eyebrow, clearly unsatisfied with the vague answer.

"I see, and what is it you two do for a living?" Seeing the annoyance on his brothers face Connor stepped in again,

"We work at da meat packin' plant few blocks away." The man practically sneered,

"Well, now I really am intrigued as to how you and Miss Doyle met. She is a rather wonderful woman and I can see why you would take an interest in her." This threw the boys as they weren't expecting such a statement, "But she is entirely above your standards chaps, despite her handicap." Anger flooded Murphy at his words but he didn't have time to react because they had arrived at her classroom. Mr. Winchester knocked on the door,

"Come in." He entered the room and was quickly followed by the two brothers,

"Miss Doyle, I have two gentlemen here who claim to be friends of yours." Murphy didn't even waste time as he brushed past the man,

"Chris…"

"We're a bit early bu' we wanted to surprise ya." Mr. Winchester watched as her face lit up and a smile stretched across her face,

"Murphy! Connor!" She quickly crossed the room and was engulfed in a hug by Murphy and then Connor, "Oh I'm so happy ya both are 'ere!"

"Well we couldn't wait any longer to see ya love."

"An' we were getting' hungry." Connor rubbed his stomach with a joking smile. She laughed,

"Yeah, I'm sure you are excited. I should start havin' ya boys over for dinner all the time if ya willin' to help me with the shoppin'." Connor raised his arm in a victory motion,

"That sounds like a marvelous idea lass!"

"Aye, I think we could get used to tha'." Murphy still had his arm around her when Mr. Winchester cleared his throat, drawing their attention,

"Oh! Sorry Mr. Winchester, I forgot you were there." His disgruntled look became even more sour if possible, "Thank you so much for bringin' the boys to me." He pursed his lips,

"Always willing to lend a hand Miss Doyle, have a good afternoon." He gave the boys another disgusted look, before shooting a particularly annoyed look at Murphy, "Gentlemen." They nodded their heads and he left. The brothers grinned at one another.

"Class, this is Murphy and Connor MacManus, two very dear friends of mine." There was a chorus of hello Mr. MacManus before she turned to them, "If you two want to sit at my desk, I've only got about five more minutes left."

"Sure thing lass." Murphy sat in her chair while Connor leaned against the wall behind him; the two took in the room around them. It looked like every other classroom with its decorative bulletin boards and children's decorations hanging on the walls. There were eight children total in the room and all looked to be between the ages of ten and thirteen. The small size didn't surprise the boys, seeing how it was a special needs class. There was one boy though who didn't fit the pattern. He was older than the others, quiet, and seemed to be finishing rearranging a shelf in the back of the room. It donned on Murphy that this was her assistant, Will. He smiled, the kid finished his work and stood before silently making his way to an empty seat in the back as Chris finished teaching. That was something else Murphy took note of, he knew Chris was a good teacher. She had that air about her, but to actually be there and to hear her teach; he'd give anything just to sit and listen to her teach, regardless of what the lesson was.

When the bell rang and the children went on their way she turned to the corner of the room where Will was sat, clearly this was the boy's usual spot.

"Thank ya Will for helpin' me today." He gave her a small smile,

"You're welcome Miss Doyle." She held her hand out to the boy, beckoning him over,

"Will, I'd like ya ta meet some friends of mine. This is Murphy and Connor MacManus." The boy made his way over and offered the two a handshake which they hardily accepted,

"It's nice to meet you both." They gave him a warm smile,

"And it's nice to meet ya too lad."

"Will, why don't ya go on home. The boys can help me close up today." Will smiled at her,

"Alright, thank you Miss Doyle." He waved at the group of them as he headed towards the door, "Have a good night."

"You too!" She turned to the boys with her hands on her hips and a grin on her face, "Aright, before we head off ta the market I've got some chores for you two." The brothers shared a look before Connor crossed his arms,

"And what kind of chores would tha' be lass?"

The boys wasted no time in cleaning off the blackboard and wiping down the desks and chairs before tackling the trash and gathering up all of the papers that needed to be graded. In ten minutes they were ready to go. Murphy looped his arm through hers as they headed down the hall, Connor had her bag filled with papers slung over his shoulder.

"So, what all do we need to make this Sheppard's pie lass?" As she listed off all that they would need they made their way past the front desk where a few of the teachers had congregated to talk before heading off for the night, "Goodnight everybody!" There was a chorus of goodnights and smiles save one Mr. Winchester who glared vehemently at the pair of brothers. To which they gave him the biggest shit eating grin they could.

As they trio made their way down the street they each told one another about their day at work and all that it entailed before getting on the subject of one sour puss teacher. Connor ran his hand across his face,

"So what's da deal with this Mr. Winchester?" She laughed,

"Mr. Winchester is a cold fish who for some reason 'as got it in his head that I should go out with 'im." Connor chuckled,

"Why?" She shrugged,

"I dunno. He's offered to take me ta dinner several times an' each time I've turned 'im down. He's far too smug for my likin'. Besides, he's got a very privileged outlook on thin's." Murphy chuckled,

"Yeah, we gathered tha'." A frown formed on her face,

"He didn't say anythin' to you guys did he?" The two shared a look before Connor shook his head,

"Eh, it was nothin' we couldn't handle." She sighed,

"I'm sorry, he can be a real ass." Murphy squeezed her hand,

"It's alrigh' Chris, it's not like ya can control him."

"I know but still." The three entered the store and quickly made work of their list before checking out and heading off toward her place.

The mood was cheerful and jovial as Chris and the boys moved about the kitchen. The two had insisted on helping this time so she gave the potatoes to Connor to peel and mash while giving the rest of the vegetables to Murphy to clean and cut up. Chris took on the meat for herself. She had decided to go with beef instead of lamb this time considering she had made them lamb stew when they were over last time. This suited the boys just fine. The trio continued their joking and laughing as they prepared the food. The boys were regaling her with stories while occasionally breaking out into small brotherly arguments. Chris had laughed so hard her stomach hurt and there were tears in her eyes. Once everything was finished the boys brought her the mashed potatoes and the vegetables.

"'ere ya go lass." Connor sat the bowl in front of her before kissing her on the head,

"Thanks Connor."

"Ill start settin' the table." As he gathered the dishes Murphy sat his bowl of cut up vegetables in front of her before quietly saying,

"Need anythin' else love?" A light blush covered her cheeks as she smiled down at the pot in front of her,

"No Murph but thank ya." He grinned before leaning forward and kissing her cheek. Her cheeks burned more but her smile grew wider and so did his as he pulled back,

"I'll go help Connor, make sure he doesn't break anythin'."

"Oi! I heard that!" She laughed as they began to bicker again. As she mixed everything together she couldn't help but think about this would be like to have every day.

When the food was completely done and served up they dug in quickly. Everyone had had a long day and food was the answer. The boys were in culinary heaven.

"Murph, I think she could put Ma's cookin' to shame."

"Agreed, love this delicious." She smiled,

"Well I'm glad ya like it so much. Ya know, I was thinkin' of makin' a pizza tomorrow if ya boys are interested." The two didn't even hesitate,

"Sweet Jesus yes." She laughed,

"Lord's name!"

And that's how it started, for the next three weeks the boys came over every night for dinner except on Friday's and Saturdays where they all went to Doc's instead, and on Sundays the boys cooked for her. Well, more like Murphy cooked for her. Connor himself was rubbish when it actually came to cooking so he mostly did the peeling and dicing of vegetables and such. This became their routine and both the boys and Chris were pleased with it. And for the first time in a long time Chris had a family again.

Hello everyone, sorry it's taken me so long to get this chapter out. I started it not long after I posted the last chapter but then classes got in the way and finals week came up and then the holiday and I've only just been able to sit down and crank the rest of this chapter out. I hope you all like it, I know it's not very action packed yet since it's still set before the actual film itself but I promise that it is coming, I just have some milestones to hit before we get there. But we're close I can promise ya that. Now, I have to go to visit my grandmother in Pennsylvania tomorrow and stay there for a few days (not looking forward to that, I really don't like, she's a mean woman who used to be abusive to my mum and her brothers so don't feel too sorry for her) but because I hate going to see her so much you get bet that I'm going to be working on this story while I'm there to keep me sane. So expect more recent updates :D Please drop me a review, favorite and follow the story. Thank you so much for sticking with me and reading my story and cheers everyone!

~ilovemedia18