A/N: Thank you for all the feedback! I really appreciate it!
You might have to refer back to Chapter 19 of this story. A part of this appears here!
Also I want to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone. This is now my most reviewed story ever. As of now, there are now 314 reviews for this story. I'm so happy everyone's enjoying it and reviewing. Thank you again!
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the HSM characters. This story is pure fiction!
January 13th, 2024 6:30 pm
"Thank you so much for watching them, Amanda." I told her with a smile on my face.
"It's not a problem. I bet you guys need some time to bond with the older kids huh?" Amanda asked me before I nodded my head.
"Yeah we really do. We haven't been spending much time with them because of Cassie, Lily, and J.J. Tonight it's all about them." I told her.
"That's good. And it's not a problem again. We enjoy watching our grandchildren for the night." Amanda told me as Jack and Troy appeared at the doorway.
"And where have you two been?" I asked my father-in-law and husband with a grin.
"We were in the kitchen talking. Are you almost ready to go?" Troy asked me.
"I'm ready whenever you are but we have to get the kids ready." I told him laughing.
"I know. Come on guys, we're leaving." Troy said walking into the hallway to yell up the stairs.
"Coming daddy!" I heard Belle call as I watched her bounce down the stairs to greet her grandparents.
I shyly looked at Troy as he grinned at me. He gave me a look which I whole heartily shook my head at. I cleared my throat grabbing everyone's attention.
"You guys ready to go?" I asked looking at the four eager children.
"Yeah mom; let's hit the road." Aidan said pumping his fist in the air.
"If you guys need anything, you know our cell phones." I told my in-laws as they both smiled at us.
"Have fun and don't worry about anything here." Jack said as I smiled at him.
"Ok kids let's hit the road." Troy said as we said goodbye to the grandparents and headed out the door.
We all piled into the car and started driving towards UMN's stadium. I turned around in my seat as we got closer to the center to see the kids' reaction. I laughed a little before staring at the building myself.
"What are you giggling about?" Troy asked pulling me out of my thoughts.
"The kids' reactions. I don't think they've seen this building before." I told him.
"They've seen it but never this close before." Troy told me before pulling into the parking lot and pulling into a spot.
"You guys ready?" Troy asked turning around and looking at the kids' excited faces.
"Yeah dad let's go!" Josh exclaimed as Troy and I laughed at our son's excitement.
"You heard your brother; outta the car now!" I said which caused the kids to laugh.
Belle and Aidan took my hand as Mack and Josh took Troy's. As a family, we walked towards the arena. I heard Troy sigh as I looked at him. I let go of Aidan's hand and squeezed his hand that was covered by Mack's hand. He turned and smiled at me.
"Wow dad this is cool!" Aidan exclaimed as we walked into the arena. I looked around and was instantly thrown back into a memory.
"What's that look for?" Troy asked as I looked at him.
"I'll tell you later." I mumbled as we walked around and tried to find our seats.
I looked at what the kids had on and laughed. My laughter caught Troy's attention and he looked at me.
"What are you laughing about woman?" Troy asked as I smiled at him.
"I think the kids need to show who they're rooting for." I told him hoping he would catch my drift.
"You're right. They need UMN shirts." Troy told me as I nodded at him.
He took Aidan and Josh over to the stand and to buy the kids t-shirts. The girls looked at me and smiled.
"What are you thinking about mom?" Mack asked me as I crouched down to her level.
"I was just thinking about high school." I told her as she and Belle gave me a weird look.
"What about high school?" Belle asked as I looked up and saw Troy talking to the two boys.
"Your dad played here in this arena when he was in high school. It was the championship game." I told them as they both smiled.
"Really? Why would he play here and not East high?" Mack asked me.
"They played West high and West high didn't think it was fair to play at East high so they wanted neutral territory so they played here." I told her.
"Very cool. Maybe I'll play here on day." Mack said as I smiled and nodded at her.
"I hope you do. Your dad and I love it here." I said as Troy, Josh, and Aidan came back with t-shirts in tow.
"We ready?" Troy asked me as I nodded my head.
"Let's go get settled down." I told him as we found our entrance and walked down the stairs to our seats.
"This is so cool, dad." Mack said looking around the huge arena.
"I know. You have to thank mom for getting the tickets." Troy said throwing a glance in my direction.
"Thank you mom." All four kids said to me.
"You are most welcome. Now we'll have to take you back to mine and dad's college and take you to a game there." I told them.
"What college is that?" Josh asked as Troy and I both rolled our eyes.
"It's Brown University and it's in Rhode Island." Troy said as they all nodded.
"When can we go there?" Mack asked as Troy gave me a glance.
"Maybe we'll go there next summer. We'll have to see though." Troy said as the kids smiled.
"Can we go there?" Aidan and Josh both asked as Troy and I laughed.
"We'll have to see. We might go there for Spring break but we'll have to see how things go." I told them.
"Cool. When's the game going to start?" Belle asked as I looked at my watch.
"In about 20 minutes. Can you guys sit here and watch the guys warm up?" I asked as all four kids nodded their heads and looked at the court.
"What was that look for earlier?" Troy asked once the kids were occupied with what was going on the court.
"I was thrown back to when you played here your senior year of high school." I told him as he smiled at me.
"Ahh fine memories. I remember being really excited because we were playing on UMN's home court. Chad and I were hyper that entire day. Dad couldn't even calm me down." Troy said looking at me.
"I was nervous the entire day for you. I couldn't help it; I knew this was the biggest game of your career and I knew it would be the last time I would watch you play basketball." I told him as he rubbed his hand down my cheek.
"You said you wouldn't come watch me at USC. I would suit up every game and before we would start practicing, I would scan the crowd, hoping you would surprise me and come watch me play. You never came." Troy told me as I looked down to the ground.
"I'm sorry I never came. I think I was mad that you gave up our relationship and just broke it off." I told him as he smiled slightly.
"I'm here now and I've tried to make it up to you. It broke my heart the moment my dad came to take me to the airport." Troy told me.
"You are here now and I love it. You have no idea how happy I was the day I saw you standing outside of my house." I told him smiling.
"I was nervous as hell that day. When we took that walk, I was shaking so bad. I didn't want to mess it up a second time." Troy told me.
"You could never mess it up. I loved you too much." I told him as Mack grabbed our attention.
"Are you two done talking? The game's about to start." Mack said with a roll of her eyes.
"Yes princess we're done talking." I told her as she shook her hair and laughed.
We sat there as a family and watched the game. It was fun just us as a family sitting there spending some time together. Troy and I just watched the kids and their faces' reflected their great time. Troy and I knew Mack and Aidan would love it more than Belle and Josh because of their passion to play ball. Mack and Aidan both promised Troy and I they would play there one day. Troy and I told them we wish it would happen.
February 14, 2024 3:30 pm
"MOM! We're home!" I heard Aidan yell as I sat in the nursery trying to rock Cassie back to sleep.
"I'm up here." I called as I heard footsteps on the stairs.
"Hi momma. We got valentines today." Belle told me as I smiled at her.
"I know you did. It's Valentine's day." I told her with a smile.
"What are you doing?" Josh asked coming into the nursery.
"I'm trying to rock Cassie back to sleep. It's not working." I told him as he came over and kissed the 6th month old baby's forehead.
"Oh ok. We're going downstairs." Belle informed me as she dragged her brother out into the hallway with her.
"Belle stop! I wanna talk to momma." Josh told her as she quickly shushed him.
"She's trying to get Cassie to sleep. Let's go." Belle said as I laughed at her and Josh.
"Ok sleepy girl, you're not going to sleep are you?" I asked Cassie as she laughed a little at me.
"I didn't think so. Well at least J.J. and Lily know how to sleep." I told her as we walked out of the nursery.
We walked downstairs and into the messy kitchen. I groaned at the sight of the dirty dishes piled up in the sink and the mess I found at the kitchen table.
"Bolton children, this table needs to be cleaned up. Hey Aidan, will you go get a bouncy chair from the living room?" I asked him as he looked at me.
"Sure be right back." He told me as he ran into the living room and returned a few seconds later.
He placed it on the counter as I placed Cassie in it. I watched her a few minutes before tackling the dirty dishes.
I glanced over at the kids every few minutes. They were examining each other Valentines'.
"Ooh Mack got a secret card from her BOYFRIEND." Aidan said as Mack quickly denied it.
"I did not and I don't have a boyfriend." Mack quickly said as I shook my head at the two.
"Then what is Brandon? Huh? He's a boy and your friend so he's your boyfriend." Aidan quickly pointed out as Mack's face showed anger.
"He's not my BOYFRIEND! Mom tell him Brandon's not my boyfriend." Mack complained as I smiled.
"Aidan quit teasing your sister." I told him as he looked at me.
"But mom, Brandon's her boyfriend. Just like Miranda is Josh's girlfriend." Aidan told me.
"The only difference is that it's public known that Miranda and Josh are boyfriend and girlfriend. Brandon and your sister aren't boyfriend and girlfriend." I told him as he scrawled at me.
"But mom it's Valentines' day and Mack got a special Valentine from Brandon." Aidan told me.
"Leave her alone Aidan. Did you get any secret Valentines?" I asked him as his eyes got wide.
"Um . . . who would I get a special Valentine from?" Aidan asked quickly as I smiled.
"How about a certain person named Michelle Brooks?" I asked him mentioning a girl he liked from school. He just smiled.
"Nah I didn't get any from her." Aidan told me as I threw him a look.
"I don't believe that for a second, my son." I told him as he smiled at me again.
"All right maybe she got me something." He told me as I grinned and shook my head at him.
"Leave your sister alone." I told him as he slowly agreed.
"All right mom I will because you asked me to." Aidan told me.
"Good; will you go see what Belle and Josh are up to?" I asked him hoping he would so I could talk to Mack.
"I will. See ya ma." Aidan told me as he walked out of the kitchen.
"Mack, you want to talk?" I asked her as she came over to play with Cassie.
"Mom why does everyone assume Brandon and I are boyfriend/girlfriend?" Mack asked as I looked over at her.
"You guys have been best friends since the day you were born. A lot of friendships are natural for boyfriend and girlfriend." I tried to explain to her.
"But we're just friends; nothing more, nothing less." Mack told me as I smiled at her.
"Do you want more or no?" I asked her as she looked up at me.
"Mom I'm 9 years old. I'm not old enough to have a boyfriend yet." Mack said as I smiled at her.
"You're absolutely right. Don't push it. If it's meant to be, then it will be." I told her.
"Hey mom?" Mack asked as I looked over at her.
"Yeah Mack?" I asked as she took a cookie out of the jar and walked over to the table.
"Do you think dad and you were meant to be?" Mack asked me as I walked over to the table and sat down.
"I like to think so. We were high school sweethearts. I had moved here to Albuquerque when I was 16 and your dad was one of the first people I had met. It took us a little while but eventually we fell in love." I told her.
"See I want to be like you and dad when I get older." Mack told me as I smiled at her.
"Dad and I wish that for all of you kids. But be patient. Don't rush things; once you grow up, you can go back to being a child again." I told her.
"But I want to do more grown up things." Mack told me as I pushed her hair off her face.
"You're 9 years old Mack. You have plenty of time to do grow up things. You're a kid and kids are supposed to have fun. The boyfriends and other things will come later. And besides you can't date until your 16." I told her.
"Thanks mom." Mack told me as I hugged her close to me.
"Not a problem baby. Do you want to talk about anything else?" I asked her as she smiled.
"How did you know dad was the one for you?" Mack asked me as I smiled at her.
"Aren't you a little young to be hearing about this?" I asked her as she laughed.
"But mom you always told me you would tell me one day." Mack told me.
"And I will when you're older. Go do your homework. Dad will be home soon." I told her.
"Ok mom. Thank you." Mack told me as I look at her.
"What for?" I asked her as she smiled.
"For talking with Aidan and me. We don't tell you everyday that we love you." Mack told me.
"I know you guys love me." I told her as she came over and wrapped me in a hug.
"I know but I feel like I should say it more often." Mack told me as I smiled.
"I would love to hear that. Now go do your homework." I told her as she nodded.
No sooner did she run upstairs did I hear the backdoor slam as Troy came in. I sighed as he came and kissed my cheek.
"What have you been dealing with?" Troy asked me as I looked at him.
"Our little girl is growing up." I told him as he sat down at the table.
"What do you mean?" Troy asked as I looked over at him.
"It means she's getting secret Valentines from her best friend." I told him as he shook his head.
"I was hoping that wouldn't happen until she was in high school." Troy told me as I smiled in sympathy.
"I know you didn't want to hear that but it's the truth. Brandon wrote her a Valentines card today." I told him.
"They're not "official" yet are they?" Troy asked me as I smiled at him.
"Mack thinks she's too young to have a boyfriend. And I told her she couldn't date until she's 16." I told him as he smiled.
"I thought we agreed she couldn't date until she was 20?" Troy asked looking at me.
"She's going to grow up whether we like it or not. Mack's smart in the fact she doesn't want one right now. I told her she has plenty of time for dating." I told him.
"I can't believe she's thinking about boys all ready." Troy told me as I rolled my eyes at him.
"She does notice them." I told him as he grinned at me.
"I guess I can be thankful in the fact that she picked someone we've known since the day he was born." Troy told me.
"That's a good thing. Also Aidan got a special card from Michelle Brooks." I told him.
"Who's she?" Troy asked me as I shook my head at him.
"The girl your son has a crush on. He was teasing Mack about her card so I got the scoop on his card." I told him.
"Anyone else in this family who has crushes?" Troy asked as I rolled my eyes.
"Well Josh claims he loves Miranda but that's puppy love for now. And I don't think Belle likes anyone." I told him looking at him with a grin.
"That's a very good thing for the moment." Troy told me as I laughed at him.
"Troy someday the kids will grow up and get girlfriends and boyfriends, wives and husbands of their own. We're going to have to let them loose sometime." I told him.
"I would rather do that later rather than now. I'm sorry." Troy told me smiling.
"It's hard I know but it's a fact of life." I told him as I wrapped my arms around his shoulders.
We stayed like until the kids came down the stairs asking where dinner was. I gave Troy a kiss before going to make dinner. I watched Troy eye Aidan and Mack and just laughed. He hated the fact the kids were growing up.
There you guys go. Feedback would be most appreciated. I would love to hear some ideas for upcoming chapters. I've got a few but those are most in the future but I would love to hear what you guys are thinking!