Alex was sitting on the sand, her legs stretched out and her arms out behind her, her elbows pressed into the sand, keeping herself propped up. She was looking out to the horizon, thoughts of her son, her girls, a new baby running around her mind. "So, I finished the peach one, but there's still half of the passionfruit one left." Maggie said, sitting down next to her wife. She felt the cold water hit her body as the waves lapped around her.
"Don't think we should have the glass down by the water." Alex murmured as she took it from her wife and took a drink.
"Oh, sorry, I just thought…" Maggie pursed her lips. "Well, you've been down here a while and its hot. I thought you'd be thirsty."
"Yeah yeah," Alex agreed. "I'm sure I can be sensible with it," Alex retorted. "Not like there's alcohol in it to make me tipsy." Alex muttered, before putting the straw in her mouth again to take another drink.
"Alex, please don't be mad at me," Maggie pleaded with her. "I love you so much that I had kids to be with you," Maggie reminded her. "I love our kids more than anything and I'm glad that I became a mum but asking me to have a child or carry your child, Alex, it's just -"
"You don't want too," Alex cut her off. "It's not something I can force on you, I know," Alex said. The last thing she wanted Maggie to do was to be pressured into being pregnant. It was clearly something she had no desire to do. "And who knows, maybe in the future I'll feel differently about being pregnant again," Alex said, looking around to her wife. "Or we'll adopt or maybe we don't need anymore kids," Alex exhaled lightly. "Maybe this is just me still trying to process losing Carter," Alex bit her lip. "You know, I can't raise my son so I'm trying to fill that void."
"Well, maybe," Maggie murmured. "Sweetie, how about right now we just don't get ourselves stressed out about this?" Maggie questioned. "You know, we agreed to leave it for the future. How about right now, we just focus on us and the kids we do have and when the time is right, if we are supposed to have another child then plans for that to happen will fall into place."
"Mmm," Alex nodded. "Sorry I keep bringing it up."
"Don't be sorry," Maggie shook her head lightly. "You are dealing with this the best way you can, and you are going to think of different ways to try to get through this, but right now, the best thing for us to do is not make any rash decisions," Maggie said. "We just enjoy being us again, yeah?" Maggie said, and Alex gave the littlest of nods. "And we have the summer to enjoy being with our girls. We can enjoy being a family again."
"Sounds good," Alex smiled softly as she looked into her wife's eyes. "But right now," Alex shuffled herself a little closer to her wife, making sure not to spill the drink as she did so. "How about we keep just enjoying this time together?" Alex questioned.
"Not going to say no to that." Maggie spoke softly as Alex wrapped her arm around her. Maggie rested her head on her wife's shoulder as they looked out to the ocean, the water gently lapping around them.
Kara was pushing Hayden on the swing. They'd packed up the picnic and had taken the picnic basket back to the car, so they could go play at the playpark. Eliza was sitting outside the sectioned off playpark area, on the benches nearby because Trudi wasn't allowed in the playpark. Trudi was currently off fetching a stick than Eliza had thrown for her to keep her occupied as Hayden played. "Higher Kara higher," Hayden pleaded. "All the way to space."
"Space?" Kara gasped. "That's awfully far."
"Yeah," Hayden grinned. "To the moon."
"Woah, I don't think your mummies would like it if I sent you to the moon." Kara pushed on Hayden's back, causing the swing to go higher.
"Not for really, Kara," Hayden told her. "Just for pretend."
"Oh I see," Kara murmured. "Silly me."
"Yes, silly you," Hayden giggled as Kara pushed her higher on the swing. "K, when is Mummies coming home?" Hayden wondered.
"Uh, on Monday," Kara answered.
"What's today?" Hayden asked.
"Today is Saturday," Kara said. "So, Monday is two days away."
"Oh no," Hayden sighed. "That is soooo long." Hayden emphasised the O sound of the so.
"I know it is." Kara knew for a 3-year-old that a few days not seeing your parents would seem like a rather long time.
"I miss them." Hayden said.
"But you are having fun here with me and Grandma and Uncle Neil and Ava and Emmi, right?" Kara questioned.
"And my Trudi," Hayden added to Kara's list. "But I miss my mummies too much." Hayden sounded like she was about to cry.
"Aw sweetie," Kara stopped the swing and walked around to the front, so she was facing Hayden. She knelt down to be at the same level as her. "I know you'll miss them, but you are going to have so much fun here that time will fly by," Kara told her, putting her hand on Hayden's knee. "You, Grandma, Ava and Emmi are coming to my place for dinner tonight, so you'll get to see Uncle Neil again." Kara said, bringing her hand up and lightly tapping it against Hayden's cheek, Hayden managing a little smile.
"You make me fish fingers?" Hayden questioned.
"Sure, if that's what you want then that's what I'll make you." Kara told her, and Hayden's smile grew larger as she looked over to Eliza, seeing Ava and Emmi approaching her, them now meeting them after being at the softball.
"Emmi's here," Hayden jumped off the swing and ran over to the gate, pulling at it, trying to get it open. "Help me." Hayden looked around to Kara who was walking over to help her get out.
"There you go." Kara opened the gate and let Hayden out of the playpark. Hayden ran over to her sister, wrapping her arms tightly around her.
"Hey Jelly, what's wrong?" Emmi put her hands around her little sister as she was still holding onto her, softly rubbing her back.
"I miss Mummies." Hayden's voice was muffled against Emmi's leg.
"I miss Mummies too but it's important they spend some time just them." Emmi told her as she kept lightly rubbing her sister's back.
Hayden frowned as she looked up at Emmi. "Why?"
"Because they are a couple and they are in love and they are allowed to do things with just the two of them sometimes." Emmi answered.
Hayden sighed rather loudly as she stepped back from her sister. "I wish it would be Monday."
"It will be soon," Emmi said. "And how about when we go to Auntie K's house I hide some things and you can do a treasure hunt to find them?" Emmi questioned, and Hayden nodded as she grinned, looking excited at the thought of a treasure hunt.
Eliza, Kara and Ava all stared at Emmi, finding her way to keep her sister from getting to upset of missing her mummies rather sweet. "Well that sounds like such a fun idea, huh Jelly?" Ava said as she reached down and ruffled Hayden's hair.
"Yes." Hayden nodded. She loved looking for treasures.
Eliza smiled at her eldest granddaughter. "You have fun watching the softball?"
"Yes," Emmi nodded. "We lost though." Emmi pouted sadly.
"Ah well sadly someone has to lose, huh?" Eliza questioned, before looking beyond them, seeing that same man from before watching them again. She glanced at Kara and gestured for her to look in his direction. Ava noticed the exchange between them and also looked around.
"Can I help you?" Kara took a few steps forward, putting herself in-between the man and the girls.
The man looked a little startled. "I was just admiring the dog," The man rubbed the back of his head as he spoke. "Beautiful." He pointed to Trudi as he took some steps closer.
Trudi took some steps across and looked up at the man, before she bared her teeth at him and growled, the dog clearly not liking the look of this man. The man took a few steps back before he turned around and walked away quickly. "That's not like Trudi," Ava noted. "She's normally really friendly."
"Well maybe she can sense something we can't." Eliza mumbled.
Ava looked over in the direction of the man who was still walking away, before turning back around to face everyone again. "Hey, you two, how about we see who can get to that tree the fastest?" Ava said, pointing out to a tree not so far away.
"What I win?" Hayden questioned.
"Uh..." Ava rubbed the back of her head. "I'll give the winner a quarter." Ava answered.
"Oh, a big treasure." Hayden nodded, looking up for this little race.
"Uh…" Emmi looked between the adults. She knew they wanted to talk about something without her being there. "Okay, ready Hayden?"
"I'm ready." Hayden stood with one foot out in front of the other, her hands in fists as she held them out, one a little further forward that the other.
"Ready…steady…go," Ava shouted, Hayden and Emmi running off, Trudi giving a bark of excitement as she ran off after them. "That guy was at the softball for a bit," Ava said when she was sure the girls were out of earshot. "I thought he was staring at us," Ava spoke quietly. "Uh….I think he followed us here."
Kara and Eliza exchanged a glance. "Take the girls back to my place," Kara told her mother. "I'm going to go catch up with him." Kara said. Before Eliza could answer her, Kara had run off in the direction he'd gone in.
"Do you think he is after something?" Ava questioned. "The girls?" Ava's eyes widened at the thought.
"I don't know." Eliza shook her head.
"Well do you think we should alert the police?" Ava wondered.
"And say what?" Eliza asked. "A man stared at us for a minute?" Eliza questioned, her hand flying out to the side. "It's not like that is anything to go on."
"Well I think it was more than that," Ava mumbled. "Should we call Maggie and Alex?"
Eliza exhaled loudly as she ran her hand over her forehead. "Let's just see if Kara catches up with him." Eliza suggested. She didn't want to worry them or interrupt their weekend away for nothing.
Ava opened her mouth to talk again but heard Emmi shouting over to them. "I won." Emmi shouted. Ava and Eliza glanced at each other before they looked back over to Emmi, walking across in their direction.
"No fair she is bigger." Hayden pouted as she folded her arms across her chest and banged her foot down off the ground.
"Aw you both did good," Ava said. "You got here so fast." Ava reached down and ruffled Hayden's hair before she reached into her pocket and pulled out some coins. She lifted out two quarters, giving one to Emmi and one to Hayden. This put a grin on Hayden's face, her big brown eyes widening as she stared at the shiny coin that was in her hands.
"Thanks." Emmi gave Ava a little smile before putting the coin away in her pocket.
"Right, well let's get you girls home, huh?" Eliza said, her eyes darting around, looking for any sign of Kara or the man.
"Home home?" Hayden gasped excitedly.
"Well, to Kara's. We will be having dinner there, remember?" Eliza questioned as she took Hayden's hand, Hayden still keeping a hold of her quarter in her other.
"Oh yes. My treasure hunt is there." Hayden spoke happily, seemingly having forgotten that she was missing her mothers at this precise moment.
"Yeah, that'll be good, huh?" Eliza murmured as they made their way out of the park to go to Kara house, Eliza hoping Kara would sort out this man, before anything bad happened.
Alex and Maggie had gone for a walk into the town. They'd decided to give the crazy golf a miss for now and were just going to do a bit shopping, going to find a little gift for the girls but had stopped off for a frozen yoghurt first. They were sitting at the tables outside, Alex having picked a plain yoghurt but put some mini reeces peanut butter cups on it along with some chocolate sauce, and Maggie had picked a coconut yoghurt and put some white, milk and dark chocolate chips over the top. There was also a bottle of water sitting on the table that they were sharing. "Mmm, this coconut yoghurt is amazing," Maggie said, putting some onto her spoon. "Taste it." Maggie reached her hand out and Alex opened her mouth, tasting her wife's yoghurt.
"Mmm yeah, nice," Alex swallowed. "I'm not sharing my peanut butter cups with you though." Alex teased as she pulled her bowl closer to herself, causing Maggie to chuckle.
"Aww but babe I'm injured, and you know, the doctor did say that one of your wife's peanut butter cups would help greatly in your recovery." Maggie said, a cheeky grin etching on her face.
"Oh, well in that case," Alex put some frozen yoghurt onto her spoon, making sure to pick up not one but two of her mini peanut butter cups. "If it's doctors orders and all." Alex leaned her arm across the table, the spoon going into her wife's mouth.
"Ahh see I feel better already." Maggie joked. After they'd sat at the waters edge for a while, they and gone into the water. Maggie didn't exactly swim but she'd moved around in the water and had come out feeling sore, having clearly irritated her still healing ribs.
"I bet you feel fine anyways," Alex murmured. "You just don't want to lose to me at crazy golf." Alex spoke jokingly. She knew her wife was still hurting but was glad the banter was back in their relationship.
"I mean, if you want me to be honest then yeah but c'mon, the broken ribs still hurting is a better excuse," Maggie said, and Alex chuckled. "But uh, I'm sorry that we have to change our plans again." Maggie sighed as she reached of the bottle of water.
"Stop being sorry," Alex told her, watching her as she look a drink. "Besides, we didn't really have plans for today, did we?" Alex questioned, and Maggie shook her head as she swallowed a mouthful of water. "It was a let's just see what happens kinda day," Alex said, taking another spoonful of her yoghurt. "And we've had a lovely breakfast overlooking the ocean, we had some cocktails and a swim and now we are enjoying some frozen yoghurt," Alex said. "Is this not a good, relaxing day?" Alex questioned. "Is this boring you?"
"No," Maggie answered. "It's been nice."
"Right then, so don't be sorry for not feeling like going to play crazy golf," Alex said, watching as Maggie took a spoonful of her coconut yoghurt. "I mean pretty soon we are going to go shopping and you are going to be cooing over all the cute things we can get for the girls."
"I'll be cooing?" Maggie scrunched her face up.
"Hmm," Alex nodded. "Aww Alex this is so cute and aww Alex we should get Jelly this." Alex mocked her wife's voice and Maggie threw the lid from the water bottle at her as Alex chuckled.
"Well you know what, yeah maybe I will be like that, so sorry for enjoying buying nice little treats for my two favourite girls." Maggie said.
"You just have two favourite girls?" Alex put on a little pout.
"Oh well sorry, three," Maggie said, Alex's lips etching into a smile. "Can't forget Trudi."
Alex gasped as she threw the bottle lid back at her wife, Maggie chuckling this time. "Aww baby c'mon, you know you are my favourite wife."
"I should hope I am your only wife." Alex retorted.
"Forever and always," Maggie smiled. "Of course you are one of my favourite girls too."
"Well wouldn't hurt you to say it." Alex folded her arms across her chest, and looked downwards, faking a sad pout.
"Oh, when did you get so needy?" Maggie stood up from the chair and walked over to her wife. "You Alexandra Danvers are my very most favourite girl." Maggie told her, leaning down and placing a soft kiss on her lips.
"Aww that's sweet of you to say, thank you." Alex smiled as she looked into Maggie's mesmerising brown eyes. She brought her hand up and gently rubbed Maggie's cheek before she pulled her down for another kiss.
"You uh….you have something to say back to me?" Maggie asked. "Maybe something about your favourite girl?"
"Oh yeah," Alex's lips curled into a smile. "Emmi and Jelly."
Maggie gasped as she slapped Alex's arm. Alex chuckled. "You are my favourite and you know it baby," Alex pulled her in for another kiss. "I feel blessed to be able to call you my wife. You really are the most wonderful, sweet, kind, caring, loving woman and you've made me the luckiest person alive," Alex told her, Maggie smiling at Alex's sweet words. "And you are amazing in bed." Alex widened her eyes as she got a grin on her face.
"Ah you had to lower the tone, didn't you?" Maggie hit Alex's arm again. "That was a wonderfully sweet moment and then you had to go say that."
"So, you don't want that kind of compliment?" Alex questioned, the grin still on her face.
"Well that's obviously a very nice compliment to get but read the moment sweetie." Maggie said.
Alex pursed her lips as she gave a little nod. "Not like we've even had any of that amazing sex lately anyways," Alex bowed her head for a moment as she exhaled. "Sorry," Alex cleared her throat as she looked up back to her wife. "We won't talk about sex if you don't want to."
"It's okay," Maggie spoke softly. "And we were working on that. Me being injured kinda stopped things from progressing, but we're not worried, right? We still want to be intimate with each other so, when I no longer have broken ribs we can ship the girls off to Grandma's and spend the whole night totally uninterrupted." Maggie raised her eyebrows suggestively.
"Maybe we could sneak away for another one of these weekends?" Alex suggested. "But you know, uh, instead of going to the beach and shopping in town we could maybe spend a little more time in the bedroom?"
"Sounds like the perfect plan to me." Maggie smiled before she once again leaned down and shared a kiss with her wife.
Kara walked back into the house, sighing as she walked into the kitchen, hearing someone in there. "He moves fast." Kara leaned her elbows on the kitchen worktop and put her head in her hands.
Ava looked around to her. "Do you think he is after the girls?" Ava sounded worried.
"I don't know." Kara looked around to Ava, her lips pursing. She felt worried. She felt like something wasn't right about him.
"Well is there anything else you could do?" Ava asked. "Should we call Maggie and Alex?"
"I don't want to worry them to soon," Kara played with her hands, a worried look plastered on her face. "But I…I don't know if there's much more I can do. Maybe we need a cop."
Ava pursed her lips as she looked down to the mixing bowl. She'd decided to make some brownies to have as a dessert after dinner. "But Maggie would be the mother, not the cop on this case."
"I suppose, yeah," Kara rubbed the back of her head. "I…is Neil not back yet?" Kara said as she looked to her watch to see the time. "Maybe he'll know how we should handle this."
Ava shook her head. "But I don't think it would hurt to call the police. He was being suspicious and young kids' safely is a stake," Ava reminded her. "They'll take it seriously."
"Maybe, I…." Kara sighed. "Where are the girls?" Kara asked.
"They are outside with Eliza," Ava told her. "Hayden is doing the treasure hunt."
Kara pursed her lips as she walked over to the kitchen window and looked out to the back garden, seeing Hayden was running around, Eliza and Emmi standing in the middle of the grass watching her. "She loves looking for treasures." Kara smiled as she watched her niece disappear behind a tree at the back of the garden.
"Yeah," Ava agreed. "Oh I hope you don't mind that I'm making brownies by the way."
"No," Kara kept her gaze on Hayden outside. She reappeared from behind the tree and was now running over to the small water feature that they had. "As long as I get to eat some for dessert you can make whatever you want."
Ava nodded, indicating Kara could have some. "Hayden insisted I put raspberries in them because her Mama loves raspberry and chocolate brownies." Ava told her as she put the mixture into the baking tin for the oven.
"What you making them healthy for?" Kara turned her head to look around to Ava.
Ava stifled a laugh. "I'm not sure a few handfuls of raspberries will make the brownies healthy." Ava mumbled as she put the baking tin into the already heated up oven.
"Well, no, but," Kara walked over and picked up the mixing bowl and spatula, going to eat the leftover mixture. "Still, put something like more chocolate into the brownies."
"Sure. Next time I'll make double chocolate chocolate brownies," Ava said.
Kara gave a little nod, liking her suggestion. "So, Ryan not around today?"
"He is having a day with his Grandma." Ava said as she turned on the kitchen tap to fill the sink, so she could wash up from her baking. She put a squeeze of washing up liquid into the sink before she started putting the things into the sink, making sure to leave Kara with the mixing bowl and spatula for now.
"Well that's cute." Kara gushed as she put her hand on her chest.
"Yeah, he loves his Grandma," Ava murmured. "Uh, you want me to give you a hand making dinner?"
Kara shook her head as she once again glanced at her watch. "Neil is going to make it." Neil was due home, so she was sure he wouldn't be much longer.
Eliza appeared in the kitchen from the hallway down to the back door. "The girls want a drink," She walked over to the fridge and opened it up, pulling out the carton of apple juice. "Treasure hunting is thirsty work," Eliza mumbled as she walked over to the cupboard and took out two plastic cups, both of them with built in straws spiraling around the cup till it reached the top. One of them was orange with a yellow straw and the cup that Hayden insisted that she drink out of every time she was at her auntie Kara's. Eliza knew Emmi no longer cared about her cup colour, but she'd had a preference for the purple cup with the pink straw when she was little so Eliza got that one out. She poured two apple juices for the girls before putting the carton of juice back in the fridge. "You have any luck?" Eliza questioned, looking to Kara who was still eating the brownie batter from the spatula, the bowl being held close to her.
Kara shook her head. "He moved quickly wherever he went."
"But you are Supergirl," Eliza remarked. "There's not many who can move faster than you."
Kara shrugged. "Maybe he's alien or maybe he's been enhanced or something."
"Enhanced?" Ava turned around from doing the dishes. She grabbed the dishtowel and wiped her hands try. "Like the thing that Cadmus did to people?"
"Well not just Cadmus but yeah." Eliza nodded.
"Wait, wait," Kara shook her head. "Cadmus is no more. It's not going to be them and what would Cadmus want with two little girls?"
"Uh one is alien who has been a Cadmus prisoner before," Eliza said. "And the other is the child of the people who helped bring Cadmus to an end."
"Exactly. Cadmus are done. The main perpetrators are in prison, it's not…." Kara shook her head. "Surely Cadmus aren't back."
"I don't know." Eliza shrugged.
"I still think we should call the police." Ava murmured.
"We are probably just being paranoid," Eliza said. "We are thinking the worst because of what's previously happened with Emmi and the nature of Alex and Maggie's jobs, maybe it wouldn't be wrong to think that someone was watching them or their family, but the likelihood of something happening?" Eliza spoke questioningly.
"Well like you said, it's happened once so it can happen again," Ava said. "Isn't that more reason to call the police and at least make them aware we are worried?"
"Maybe she's right," Kara said. "It wouldn't hurt to just give them a call."
Eliza pursed her lips as she gave a little nod. "If we get any more reason to worry then we'll call right away," Eliza said as she picked up the drinks for the girls and walked down the kitchen. She walked past the laundry room and out the back door. "Girls, I got your drinks," Eliza looked around the garden. "Girls," Eliza's voice got panicked. "Hayden," Eliza looked around. "Emmi," Eliza shouted, still looking around the garden. She wondered if they were just hiding her from her, perhaps starting a game of hide and seek. She felt her stomach lurch as she looked around but saw no signs of the girls and noticed that the gate at the back of the garden was open.
Thanks to those who review. I really appreciate them. :)
Thoughts?