Author's Note: I'm actually really surprised that I was able to get a chapter up this week. For the next two weeks, I'm going to be seriously bogged down with final exams, so I doubt I'll have the time to write the next installment (until summer vacation starts, that is). But that being said, don't lose hope! Please continue with all the feedback; in fact, I'll even add a little incentive this time (since the last chapter only got 2 reviews...*sigh*). Reviewer number 40 will get the one-shot of their choice! But it has to be for this chapter...so REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW! (Yes, this is me, down on my knees in the snow, begging with all my heart.) Anyway...this chapter will lead up to chapter 12, Avery's first day of school. :) (Chapter 11 will be about something totally random, but totally cute - as always.) And that's really all I can say! I hope you enjoy it, and remember...I love you all. :D

Disclaimer: I do not own the best show in the world, otherwise known as Criminal Minds. Avery's mine, however. :)

Jack wandered into the kitchen, plopping down onto a chair at the large cherry wood dining table. He let out a weary sigh, resting his head in his hands and closing his eyes. Seconds later, he felt – rather than heard – his father approach him.

Aaron put his hand on the boy's shoulder. "Hey, buddy. Are you okay?"

Jack mumbled a "yes," but his eyes remained closed.

"Long day at school?"

He nodded in answer, lifting his head up and scanning the room for the young girl whose energy he was in serious need of. "Where's Avery?"

"Your mom is giving her a bath, I think." Aaron's gaze met that of his son. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"…About Mom giving Ave a bath?" Jack's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

Aaron snorted. "No, no…about school."

"Oh." Jack shrugged. "It was okay. I just have lots of homework."

And Little League starts up this Saturday…there goes the weekend. He won't have any time. "Hmmm." Aaron crossed his arms, an expression of thought etched in his handsome features. "Well, how about this: after dinner, if your mom isn't busy, then the two of us can help you with your school work. Then, if you're in the mood, you and I can get our gloves and baseballs out and warm up for your practice tomorrow."

Jack gave a small smile. "Okay. That sounds good."

Aaron ruffled the boy's hair. "But in the meantime, do you want to help me make dinner?"

"Sure!" Jack skipped to his feet and examined the contents of their large pantry, while Aaron rummaged around in the fridge behind him. His gaze landed on one of the only things he could cook. "Can we have soup?"

"Not bad for a late-February night," Aaron mused. "And…" He pulled out a chicken breast from the refrigerator with a flourish that would make Vanna White jealous. "I can shred this to add to it."

Jack grinned, taking hold of the can opener. "Then let's get started, Dad. I'm starving."

~.~.~

Avery sat on her bed, watching with interest as her mother pulled clothes after clothes from the pale yellow and lavender striped dresser in the corner of the room.

Emily held up three sets of pajamas. "Which ones do you want to wear, sweetheart?"

The four year old gave each set a long hard look. She could wear the ones with the blue butterflies…but she had worn those the day before. Her gaze darted indecisively between the other two, torn between the light pink ones with bright green frogs and the navy ones with smiling yellow stars.

Emily chuckled. "While you decide, let me go see what your father is up to."

"Okay, Mommy." And with an adorable grin, Avery waved her out of the room.

Padding quietly into the kitchen, Emily walked up to Aaron and wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, standing on her tiptoes to rest her chin on his shoulder. "Hey."

"Hey, Em." He wiped his hands on a towel before turning to give her a quick kiss.

She glanced at Jack, dumping the contents of a soup can into a pan. "Am I needed or can I go grab a quick shower?"

"No, go ahead. Take your time." A beat passed. "You want any company?" he asked, a twinkle in his dark eyes.

She tossed him an effortlessly gorgeous smile. "As appealing as that sounds, you're the chef right now and I'm really hungry. So, by all means, continue making food."

"Use me and abuse me," he grumbled under his breath, but smiled back.

Emily let out a bright laugh. "I don't abuse you."

Before Aaron could manage a witty reply, Avery came running into the room, a wide smile on her face. "Look at my PJs!" Emily's eyes crinkled at the corners as she saw her daughter dressed in the pink and green pajama top and the navy and yellow pajama bottoms. "I couldn't choose," the girl continued, "so I wore both." She giggled, obviously amused at her cleverness.

Aaron picked her up and swung her around. "I think you look fabulous."

She smiled almost shyly. "Thanks, Daddy."

"No problem, kiddo."

Avery looked up at her mom, squealing as she kissed her nose. "What are we going to eat for dinner?"

Emily motioned to her other half, who was shredding chicken as efficiently as possible. "That's up to these two boys," she said in answer. "Why don't you ask Jack?"

She bounded over to her brother. "Hi, Jack."

"Hey, Ave." He smiled. "I like your pigtails."

She beamed. "Thanks! What's for dinner?"

"Alphabet soup." He glanced over to his dad. "And chicken."

Avery's eyes went wide with excitement. "I know my alphabet! Mommy and Daddy taught me!"

"Really?" Jack dipped a spoon into the broth and scooped up three letters. "What letters are these?"

"M, C, and T," she said proudly, a satisfied grin on her face.

Aaron and Emily shared an amused – and somewhat intrigued – glance. Out of nowhere, Aaron procured a tray and began placing the pasta letters on it. "Do you think you can put these in order, Ave?" he asked.

Always up for a challenge, Avery nodded eagerly. After all, her mother had taught her well.

Emily chuckled as she watched the scene unfold in front of her. She elbowed Aaron in the side. "There are only twenty-five letters on that tray."

"I know."

She rolled her eyes. "You sly, sly man."

Aaron just smiled. "She'll notice it. I know she will." A beat passed as Avery began singing her ABCs. Then, quietly: "Such a smart girl…"

"I wonder whose side of the family she for it from," Emily teased.

"D…E…F…"

"Well, seeing as we've already established the fact that she has my dashing good looks –"

Emily let out a bright laugh. "That's a good one, Aaron."

"Hey!"

She stole a quick kiss. "I love you."

"I…J…"

"Abuser…" She cocked an eyebrow. "Love you too, Em."

"That's what I thought," she said sassily, still smiling. She turned her attention back to Jack. "Looks like your father forgot about dinner."

Jack shrugged. "I know how to make soup. It's really easy."

"L…M…N…"

"And I'm sure your soups are better than his, too." Jack grinned at this. "No matter how good your Uncle Sean is at cooking, your dad never quite got the hang of –"

"You do know I'm right here, right, Emily?"

"Don't worry, Aaron. I'll make it up to you later," she promised.

"How much later?"

"O…P…Q…"

"Later," she answered cryptically, casting him a slightly flirtatious glance. Then, to Jack: "Do you want any help?"

"Nope. I'm just waiting for it to boil." He looked at the abandoned cutting board on the opposite counter. "Is the chicken ready?"

"Hmmm." She craned her neck for a better view. "Nope, it isn't. Do you want me to –"

Suddenly, Avery stopped. "Daddy, R is missing."

"Really, now?" Aaron caught Emily's eye. "That's odd. I thought I had gotten all twenty-six letters…"

"But you didn't, Daddy."

Still feeling Aaron's gaze on her, Emily just shook her head and walked into the dining room to set the table, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. That silly man.

~.~.~

After watching Avery recite the alphabet twice more with not a single flaw, and after eating the best soup they had ever tasted – Jack had really outdone himself –, Aaron and Emily had tucked the children into bed and bid them both sweet dreams. They were now lying under the covers in their bedroom, barely an inch between their two bodies. Silence surrounded them, yet a thousand thoughts were dancing behind Aaron's eyes, and behind Emily's, as well.

Finally, Aaron spoke. "What are you thinking about?"

Emily closed her eyes as she felt his hands weaving through her hair. Instead of answering, however, she closed the space between them and pressed her lips to his so lightly that, had he not been watching her intently, he would have thought he had just imagined it.

"Emily…"

"Hmmm?"

"I know you're thinking about something, and if I'm right, it's the same thing – well…same person – that I'm thinking about."

There was a pause. "Avery?"

Aaron nodded. "What about her?"

"I…I think…" She cleared her throat. "I think she's ready for us to enroll her into school." Emily let out a quiet sigh. "But I don't think I'm ready for that."

"I know," Aaron said after a while. "As is, it's bad enough when we both have a case and have to leave her with someone. I just…I can't believe that she…" He shook his head. Then, in a voice barely above a whisper: "Has if really been four years? Already?"

"Yeah." Emily rolled onto her side, Aaron's strong arm coming to rest around her toned waist. "I just don't want to let her go. She's still so young. Sending her to school would make me feel like we're distancing ourselves from her."

"Which is why we homeschooler her for pre-K. I understand. But the 'distancing' will just be physical, and for only seven hours per day. I keep telling myself that, as if it'll help. No matter what…" Aaron cupped her cheek. "No matter what, she'll always be our little girl," he assured. "No matter her age, she'll always be the baby that made you eat peanut butter and pickle sandwiches." He grimaced. "I will never understand the way the female body works, will I?"

Emily laughed heartily. "No, I don't think you ever will."

Aaron smiled. "Oh, well. I think I can live with that." He twirled a strand of her hair in between his long fingers, lost in the depths of her dark, captivating eyes. "You'll miss her for a while. That's a given. But when she comes home those first few days with an endless number of stories…you'll know we made the right decision. You'll know we chose the right path."

She bit her lip gently. "I know." Then, with as much sincerity as she could muster: "Thank you."

"It's what I'm here for, sweetheart."

An errant thought crossed her mind. "I don't actually 'use and abuse' you…right?"

Aaron chuckled. "No, not at all. You treat me perfectly, Emmy."

"Good."

"Although…" Even in the sparse moonlight peeking through the partially-closed blinds, Emily could see a twinkle in her husband's eyes. "I do believe you owe me a certain something. Something to do with later…"

She tossed him a saucy grin. "Later is now, I'm assuming?"

"Oh, yes." He captured her lips with his. "Later is right now."

Author's Note: Remember - reviewer number 40 gets a one-shot of their choice! :D Thanks in advance!