Title:
Curiosity
Name:
Joy
Email: SleepingBeauty2@ziplip.com
Rating: PG-13
Fiona and Logan spent a
rainy Monday morning together as Bling and Max set up an exercise routine with
Dr. Spencer. Zack was off to Colorado to 'check' on one of their sibs while Max
never questioned what he and Logan had been discussing the night of the fight.
Logan was less likely to let the topic drop. Zack asking for Logan's help for
something other than saving Max meant that Hell had frozen over in Logan's
opinion.
"So Fi, you and Zack seem to
have really become tight," Logan said as she stared at the rainy city.
"This better not be heading
where I think it is."
"Where's that?"
Fiona turned to face her brother,
"With you asking me questions I can't answer."
"I'm just wondering what's in
Colorado," he said with a smile.
"Zack told you what's in
Colorado… You don't need to hear it from me," she shot back.
"But he comes and goes so
easily through states. Why did he need my help this time?" Logan asked.
"Maybe it was a gesture of good
faith?" Fiona replied sipping her tea.
"I don't buy it. You know and
you're not telling me."
"Let's just say things changed
for Zack at the wedding and I'm not talking about finally accepting he lost Max
to you. He accepted that a long… I mean a very long… time before. As much as
you don't like Zack for him trying to 'take' Max from you, fact is he knew she
didn't love him the way he wanted her to and she loved you. You tried so hard
to make sure she wasn't taken from you that you didn't notice the way you
pushed to keep him out of her life," Fiona said with a sigh.
Logan huffed at the prospect that he
might actually have been the problem or at least it wasn't all Zack's fault.
"Then what changed?"
"Several things… but one was my
promise to him. He finally felt like he wasn't going to lose her
entirely."
"That still doesn't explain
Colorado," Logan commented with arms folded.
"It wasn't supposed to… It was
to explain Zack."
"You're infuriating
sometimes."
"But I'm good at it!" Fiona
exclaimed.
"Hello all… Mother Max is doing
great and Jessica has approved of the walking schedule I concocted," Bling
said scurrying his sister in law in to the penthouse.
"You're about as bad as Logan
for Mother Hen Syndrome. Hey Hun, remember I have the amniocentesis on
Thursday. You're all coming," Max demanded looking around the room.
"Where is Zack?"
"Don't worry… He won't miss the
test. He'll be back by Thursday," Fiona said much to everyone's surprise.
"He'll be back for the
test?" Logan said raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah! He isn't about to have
his baby sister go through a major marker in her pregnancy without him,"
she said to him with emphasis.
"What's going on with you
two?" Bling piped up.
"Yeah… You've been
snippy…" Max contributed.
"Just general sibling
bickering," Fiona said.
"So where has Zack gotten off
to sis? Why'd he have to leave?" Logan prodded in front of Max, which got
a glare from Fi.
"You know very well he was on
his way to Colorado… You got him the sector passes!" she shot back. Both
siblings we now pissed that the other had broken the code of silence.
"What's in Colorado?" Max
asked. "And why did you ask Fi, if you knew where Zack was?" she
asked Logan.
"You first," Logan said to
his sister.
"No yours is more important."
"I agree," Max said
folding her arms on her five-month pregnant stomach.
"Fine!" Logan said with a
pout. "Fiona won't tell me why Zack left or who he was seeing so I set her
up to have you prod, knowing she won't lie to you."
"Oh… but I'll lie to
you?!" Fiona fussed.
"What about that jab about
asking for the sector passes as a good faith gesture?!" Logan snapped
back.
"That's exactly what it was
you big dork. He knew there were two towns that to go through that he would
need sector passes for. Those towns are on the most direct route to his end
location. I suggested he ask for your help to begin to smooth things over with
you two," she said in frustration.
"Oh," Logan said with a
sigh.
"You got to stop thinking the
worst of him Loggie. He's a good kid…really. He's trying… Max is 18 weeks along
almost half way done. Do you really want your baby coming into the world with
you still mistrusting its uncle?" Fi said quietly wrapping her arm around
his waist.
"No… Man, I suck at being a
grown up sometimes," he said walking to Max. He dropped to his knees.
" I'm sorry Little One. Your uncle Zack loves and protects your mama in
ways I can't comprehend. I'll work on it ok… and on Thursday maybe your uncle
Zack will talk to you." Max ran her fingers through her husband's hair as
he kissed her stomach. He got to his feet and kissed Max as Fiona was snuggled
by Bling.
"So, why is my brother in
Colorado?" Max said turning her attention to Fiona.
"No comment!"
"Come on… Please! Tell the
mother of your future niece or nephew."
"Yeah come on sis!" Logan
chimed in.
"No way… I can keep a secret.
If he had intended you to know he would have told you," Fiona said
strongly.
"Well Logan do you know
anything else about it?" Max asked.
"Don't even think about
it!" Fiona warned.
"She asked… He said something
about one of your sibs and not wanting to worry you," Logan said calmly.
"Oh no… someone's in trouble
and I can't help!" Max fussed.
"Max… Calm down. It doesn't
mean that. He obviously didn't think it was that big of a deal because he
promised he would be back by your test. It was something he knew he could
handle on his own," Fiona said reassuringly. "I promise… He'll be
fine."
"I don't like you keeping
secrets," Max said with a pout.
"Max, if it had been something
dangerous I would have made him tell you, but he was worried about you and the
baby. He didn't want you to worry needlessly this close to the test. Your blood
pressure has been too high…" Fi said hugging her sister in law.
Max became teary eyed for no real
reason, "God I hate this part of pregnancy… I can't even deal with a minor
disagreement with out crying." She turned her head to her stomach,
"You better appreciate what I'm going through for you… Oh my… I think it kicked…
I guess Little One didn't like that."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Zack, you are the
coolest!" a blond on the back of his motorcycle said as they headed to Dr.
Jessica Spencer's office. "When did you relax?"
"I don't know," he said a
bit gruff.
"You don't fool me… This has
something to do with my roommate," she said, as Zack's cheeks got slightly
pink. "Come on… You like her… For two months you've been 'dropping by' a
lot more and I know it's not to see my pretty face."
"What are you expecting me to
say?" he snarled.
The blond woman just smiled, "I
want you to say 'Maybe its not all phony sentimentality.' I want you to admit
that there are other people in the world that can love us and understand us
rather then just X-5 escapees."
"Well, I will admit that other
people can love us… I'm still not sure about it not being phony
emotional stuff, OK? When we see Max, please keep your opinions to yourself.
I'm not ready to deal with the Seattle fam picking at me."
"This place is becoming home
for you isn't?" she asked.
"Until the baby is born…yeah. I
don't know after that."
"Well, I can't wait to me the
woman who conquered the CO… I know Rachel enjoyed seeing you relaxed."
Zack's cheeks colored again. "I can't believe that the mere mention of a
female's name can cause my brother to blush."
"I didn't either!" he
exclaimed.
"Did too!"
"I can leave you at the side of
the road!"
"Fine!"
A few more minutes and the pair were
parking in the garage. "They're already here," Zack said seeing the
Aztec parked.
"Well, lets go."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Something's gone wrong. Zack
said he would be here!" Max cried in the lobby.
"He will be… I promise,"
Fiona said rubbing her back.
Zack rounded the corner with the
blond in tow, "What's with the water works, Maxie?" He leaned down to
her level in the chair.
"Don't scare me like that! I
didn't know what had happened. You took off without saying goodbye and Fiona
was keeping secrets and…" Max fussed before she realized he wasn't alone.
"I thought you might want
company," he said softly drawing the blond toward Max.
"Hey, Maxie. You looked great
at the wedding… I know you didn't see me but I got to see you. He's getting lax
in his old age," she said nodding to Zack.
"Jondy? Is it really you?"
Max said with tears streaming down her face.
"In the flesh…"
"Thank you Zack… Thank
you," Max muttered hugging Jondy.
Logan came up behind Zack and
clapped his shoulder, "Thank you Zack." The two men looked at each
other with a mutual respect that was growing. "When this is over why don't
you guys spend time talking to the baby. Little One kicked for the first time a
few days ago. I'm sure you'll get some response."
Dr. Spencer arrived to roll Max into
the operating room. "Alright who's coming in?" She asked looking at
the plethora of uncles and aunts in the waiting room.
"Fiona is it ok if Jondy comes
with Logan and I?" Max asked bashfully.
"No problem sweets. I knew
about this surprise, remember? I didn't expect to go in," Fiona answered
with a kiss on the cheek. Each person hugged Max before she disappeared behind
the big metal doors.
"I bet it's hard to be
here," Fiona said to Zack after they'd been waiting a while.
"Yeah, I hate hospitals."
"Of course… Did you get to see
her some?"
He blushed again, "I can't
believe I blush every time she is mentioned." He said in frustration while
racking his fingers through his hair.
Fiona smiled, "That's
normal."
"I can't do this."
"Yes, you can."
"No, I can't. I'm not a
blushing type."
"Was Max a blushing type before
she met Logan?" Fiona asked.
"No…but she's a girl," he
said flustered.
"You loved Max and she didn't
cause this in you?"
"No."
"Well then, you get to have the
fun, normal, human reactions to the opposite sex. Does she have a clue?"
Fi asked resting her head on Zack's shoulder.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm getting you used to
non-threatening touching by someone who loves you," she said very matter
of fact.
"Jondy knew so maybe Rachel
knows."
"Rachel knows. Roommates talk…
Rachel knows."
"What do I do?" Zack asked
boyishly.
"When you drop Jondy off, spend
a couple days down there. Do a couple things with both of them, then ask her to
do something alone."
"Why are you so good at this?"
Zack asked.
Fiona threw her arm around Zack's
shoulders and said, "Two husbands… Both amazing men with great hearts. I
had the love story everyone envies until the shooting scene in the last
chapter. Lucky for me there was a sequel involving my physical therapist."
She looked over at her husband hovering with Original Cindy for information.
"So, how long is this going to
take?" Zack asked noticing time flying by.
"Don't know."
Jondy came out crying with Logan who
was yelling at a nurse. "That's my wife… that's my baby. They need
me!"
"Logan, what's going on?"
Bling said laying a hand on his friend's shoulder to steady him.
Jondy wept but managed to say,
"Something went wrong with the test."