A/N: Hey guys :) sorry this update took so long...but, really, I only got 7 reviews, so can you really blame me? D:
I'd like to thank the people who DID take the time to review :) you guys are honestly SO amazing, and I love you all :) and I'm sorry that I took so long with this!
Anyways, I won't babble, I'll just let you get to the chapter :P Enjoy!
~ Sarah Ozera ~
~ Chapter Twenty-Eight: Baby Mine ~
Skylar's POV
When I walked in and saw Mason holding the baby, it was just too much for me to handle. I wanted to cry, knowing that he'd never be a father as long as he was with me. I hated that I took that away from him.
God, I wished that I could have his baby. Not right now, of course, but a couple of years down the road. But we'd never, ever have that option. We could always adopt, but . . . it just wouldn't be the same.
I quickly made an excuse to leave, asking Mason if he was coming with me.
Once we were outside the hospital, I could no longer keep my tears at bay. I broke down into sobs, sinking down onto one of the stone benches that sat outside.
"Babe, what's wrong?" Mason asked, his voice gentle. He sat down beside me, tilting my chin up so that my eyes met his.
"I feel like I'm robbing you, Mason," I whispered.
His brow furrowed in confusion. "Skye, what do you mean?"
I started to cry harder. "I just feel so bad that I can never give you a baby, Mase. I'm robbing you of the chance to be a father!" I cried, burying my head in my hands.
It was silent for a moment before he said, "Skylar, look at me." When I didn't, he gently pried my hands off my face. He wiped away the tear tracks on my cheeks. "Skye, I want you to listen to me and actually hear what I'm saying." I nodded. "You are the most important person in my world. I mean, yeah, it would be nice to have kids in the future, but if it's not possible with you, then I can live without. You know why?" he asked. I shook my head. "Because you're all I need to be happy."
"Are you sure?" I asked, my voice uncertain. "Because I'd completely understand if you wanted to break things off―"
I was cut off by his lips on mine. He kissed me gently, and my heart swelled with the love that I felt for him.
He pulled away, his hands resting on either side of my face. His hazel eyes bored into mine. "Skylar, I'm sure. I could never live without you; I don't even want to imagine what my life would be like."
I let him pull me to his chest.
"I love you so much, Mase," I whispered.
He kissed the crown of my head. "I love you too, Skyles. No matter what, I'll always love you."
We sat there in silence for a moment, content to be in each other's presence. I felt lighter, having had that whole conversation with him.
I stood, smiling. "Come on. We really do need to get to my house and make sure that everything is nice and clean for when Mom and Anni come home," I said.
He groaned. "Skye, you know I hate cleaning," he grumbled.
I shrugged. "Okay, then don't clean. But you won't get any repeat performances of last night if you don't help me."
His eyes widened in horror. "Okay, I'll clean!"
I burst out laughing. "That's what I thought."
Annika's POV
Everyone was waiting for us at the house when we all got home. I could smell food cooking, and I guessed that Christian was the one cooking it. Homemade pizza, if I was smelling correctly.
I set Raven's car seat on the floor, undoing the straps and buckles and lifting her out. She had a really weird look on her face, like she was thinking really hard about something.
Mom saw her face and burst out laughing. "Looks like someone's diaper is dirty," she chortled, lifting Nick. "Have fun, kids," she said, making her way up the stairs to the kitchen, Dad following behind her.
Julian and I exchanged a look before both yelling, "Not it!" Then, we sighed. "Together?"
We headed to our part of the house and into Raven's room. I set her down on the changing table, watching her while Julian got a diaper and the baby wipes.
"I'm not wiping her butt," I informed him, my voice casual.
He grimaced. "But I don't want to," he whined. "Why do I have to do it?"
"Because I said so."
Sighing, he undid the buttons of her onesie. I pulled the diaper off, nearly gagging.
"Sweet mother of cocoa puffs!" I exclaimed, throwing it in the garbage.
Julian's face was all scrunched up with disgust as he wiped her bum with a baby wipe. Raven was chewing on her fingers, making gurgling noises and drooling.
I quickly put a new diaper on her and snapped her onesie back on. I wiped the drool from her face with a blanket that I'd draped over my shoulder, and Julian lifted her into his arms. We high-fived.
"Is that better, monkey?" he asked, his voice a coo. Her response was to blow spit bubbles at him.
As we were leaving her room, he muttered, "Next time, you're wiping her ass."
~ VA ~
After supper, we all hung out in the living room. Skye and Mason never left the other's side, which I found adorable.
I currently held my baby brother. Nick certainly had a loud personality; he demanded to be acknowledged. He may have looked like a miniature version of Dad, but he definitely acted like a miniature version of Mom.
He stared up at me, gurgling happily and reaching toward my face. I giggled and poked his nose.
"Nicky, you are too cute," I crooned. Her grabbed a hold of my finger, still making happy noises.
Raven, who was currently held by Alek, began to cry. I handed Nick to Dad and got up to get Raven from my brother.
"What's wrong, baby?" I asked, rocking her gently. She wailed loudly, crying her little eyes out. "Are you hungry?" That was most likely it, since she hadn't eaten in a little while.
"I'm gonna take her to her room," I informed everyone. "We'll be back soon."
The was a chorus of "Mm-hmm" and lots of nods from everyone.
I headed down the hall and through the door that led to our part of the house. Once inside Raven's room, I sat in the rocking chair to feed her.
Sure enough, she quieted once I'd fed her. I gently burped her, and her eyelids soon drooped. She yawned adorably, making me smile as I ran a finger down her nose.
"I can't believe you're mine, monkey," I murmured. "I can't believe I'm a mom. I don't know if I'll be any good at it, but I want you to know that I'll try my best to give you the life you deserve. Because I wouldn't trade you for anything in the world. You know that, right?"
She stared up at me with those gorgeous green eyes of hers, listening intently.
"You're the more important person in my world, Rae. You are my world. Well, you and your daddy. I never knew how much I could love someone until I had you. I hope that I can be good enough to be your mommy."
Her eyes were almost closed, and she yawned again. Smiling, I began singing to her. It was one of my favorite lullabies from when I was younger.
Baby mine, don't you cry.
Baby mine, fry your eye.
Lay your head close to my heart,
Never to part,
Baby of mine.
Baby mine, when you play,
Don't you mind what they say.
Let your eyes sparkle and shine,
Never a tear,
Baby of mine.
If they knew sweet little you,
They'd end up loving you too.
All those same people who scold you,
What they'd give just for the right to hold you.
From your head to your toes,
You're not much; goodness knows.
But you're so special to me,
Cute as can be,
Baby of mine.
She was sleeping soundly by the time I finished. I continued to hold her for just a while until I, too was lulled to sleep by the memories of my own mother singing the same song to me.
Julian's POV
Annika had been gone for a while, so I decided to go down and check on her. I found her asleep in the rocking chair, a sleeping Raven nestled in her arms. I smiled softly to myself and gently lifted Raven, being careful as to not wake either of them up. They were both out, though; neither of them so much as stirred.
I laid Raven in her crib with Nitey-Nite Bear, kissing her forehead. I then headed over to the rocking chair and lifted Annika into my arms, carrying her from the room and into our room. I pulled the covers back, still holding her in one arm and laid her in the bed as gently as I could. I pulled the covers over her, placing a kiss on her forehead as well.
Her chocolate eyes opened slowly, scanning her surroundings.
"Where's the baby?" she asked drowsily.
"Asleep in her crib," I replied, stroking her hair.
"Mmm," she murmured in reply, her eyes sliding closed again. "Love you," she mumbled.
I kissed her cheek. "I love you too."
A light snore picked up, and I quietly left the room.
"Where's Annika?" Mom and Rose asked at the same time.
"She was asleep with the baby in the rocking chair, so I carried her to bed," I replied.
"She must be exhausted. I know I am," Rose said, yawning.
"She is," I acknowledged. "I could go for a nap, too."
Viktoria rose, pulling Adrian with her. "We'll head home, then," she announced.
"Us too," Eddie said, taking Mia's hand.
Mom sighed. "I guess we should go, too."
We walked everyone to the door. After saying goodbye, we all retired to our rooms.
I changed into pyjamas and curled up next to Annika, holding her close. She unconsciously snuggled closer to me, making me smile. I was insanely lucky to have her; she was my everything. The love of my life, my best friend, the mother of my child, my . . . bondmate.
That last one still pained me to think of. I hated being reminded of the fact that I couldn't save her from dying. I felt like I'd failed her. And it was the worst feeling in the world.
"Stop it, Jules," she mumbled sleepily. "It wasn't your fault."
It kinda freaked me out how she could do that.
"I thought you were asleep," I said lamely. I would never think those thoughts when she was awake, because I knew that she'd get mad at me.
She yawned. "I was," she told me, "until your thoughts woke me up."
"Sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."
She fixed her chocolate gaze upon me. "Julian, you can't feel guilty about something that was out of your control. There was nothing that anyone could've done to save me. You did what no one else could: you brought me back. So stop beating yourself up about this," she said softly, her hand coming up to rest on my cheek. I leaned into it, closing my eyes.
"I just . . . I keep seeing you die, over and over in my head. Keep seeing your face as it happened. It's like a movie in my head that's stuck on rewind. And I can't help but think that I could've done something to stop it," I whispered. A tear leaked out of my tightly shut eye, and I felt her warm finger on my cheek as she wiped it away.
"Look at me," she commanded gently, grabbing my chin. My eyes slowly opened to meet hers. "Julian, I get it. I get that it sucked to watch me die, knowing that there was nothing you could do to stop it. I get that you feel guilty. But I'm alive now. Last night is a thing of the past, now."
I took a deep, shaky breath before nodding. Her gaze softened, and she ran a hand through my hair.
"We're gonna be okay, Jules," she murmured, leaning her head against my shoulder.
I reached up to stroke her cheek, my hand trailing down to rest on her waist. I leaned my head on top of hers and smiled softly. "Yeah," I agreed, "we will."
So, how was it? It was just kind of a filler...but don't worry, more exciting (and upsetting) stuff is coming soon xD
LOL I've posted a lot since my last update...I have a few chapters of my new story "VA Road Trip" up, as well as two new oneshots! One is pre-VA, centering around Janine's decision to send Rose to St. Vlad's, and it's called "Slipping Through My Fingers" :) the other one is AH, and pretty random. It centers around Rose, and it's based off Rihanna's song "Russian Roulette" (that's the name of the oneshot, lol) So make sure to check that stuff out!
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Until next time!
~ Sar ~
