~A Once and Again Series~

The Way We Were

Chapter 23//Doubting Thoughts

Zoe had tears in her eyes as the movie ended. "That is such a sad movie!"

Jessie nodded, her own eyes slightly glassed over. "Wow, it's late..." She said, looking at the clock on top of the television. Zoe stopped the movie with the remote and hit the rewind button.

"Grace?" Zoe asked. She and Jessie turned around, looking behind at the sofa bed on which they sat. Grace and Eli lay sleeping, their faces turned towards each other, only inches apart. Zoe turned back to Jessie with a huge smile.

Jessie smiled a small smile back.

"How come they say they're not dating?" Zoe asked as she and Jessie made their way upstairs.

"Because they aren't," Jessie answered. "But I don't think it will be long before they are."

Zoe nodded at that, and they went into Zoe's room, where the bed was just big enough for Jessie, who reluctantly accepted it. Zoe curled up on her rug, comfortable in a mound of blankets.

* * *

Eli rolled over in his sleep, his foot hitting something. A distant thud. Eli opened his eyes, and slowly became aware of where he was.... in the living room at Lily's house. He sat up gradually, and noticed the sleeping figure next to him... Grace. She was a vision of pure beauty, her face peaceful as she slept.

Eli looked around the room, and saw what he had knocked off the bed in his sleep... the empty bowl that had had popcorn in it earlier. It lay fallen on the floor, but it was doing no damage. Eli let it be, and lay back down. He moved a little closer to Grace. The room had gotten chillier, so he pulled a blanket off the stack Lily had set out for him and used it to cover himself and Grace.

He closed his eyes, ready to go back to sleep, but found them opening again, as he looked over at Grace. Finally, after a few moments of closing and reopening his eyes, he inched forward. He kissed her forehead gently, then drew back and watched her. After a few minutes, he closed his eyes and let sleep take him with a pleased smile.

* * *

Rick woke first. He moved as gently as he could, but Lily clung to his form, and his slightest movement jarred her awake. "Good morning," Rick said.

Lily smiled back at him. "Good morning." She rolled back a bit, untangling her legs from his. She looked over at the window, which was coating a bright layer of frost. She turned her head back towards Rick. "Did we really do this? Did we really spend the night together, with all our kids under one roof?"

Rick nodded. "I think it went well. They all get along together really well... especially Eli and Grace." He teased.

Lily scrunched up her nose at him, "Don't even go there!"

"How about some coffee then?" Rick asked, sitting up. "I think I remember from last time I spent the night where everything is. I'll bring it up to you." He got out of the bed.

Lily smiled up at him. "That sounds nice."

Rick looked around, and then found the robe he had brought with him draped over a chair. "I'll be right back."

Rick walked down the stairs, liking how right this all seemed. Liking how he was getting used to Lily's house and even began to know which stairs creaked.

[[Rick - I could live here... I really could.]]

Rick was halfway down when he looked over at the sofa bed his son was sleeping on. He was three-fourths of the way down when he noticed another mound next to Eli under the blankets. He was at the bottom step when he realized what that meant.

[[Rick - uh.....oh....]]

* * *

"Did you forget where it is?" Lily asked as Rick entered her room again. She was in the processing of getting dressed.

Rick paused, distracted by her state of half-undress, and then shook his head, bringing himself back to reality. "Uh, I think there's something you should see."

Lily's eyes widened and she finished getting dressed. Then she followed him down the stairs. She had to only go halfway down them before she realized what she was seeing... Eli and Grace sleeping next to each other in the couch pull out bed.

[[Lily - Why didn't we think about this? Rick and I were so eager to have him and the kids stay over, that we didn't even pause to think what might happen... *shakes head* God, we practically invited this to happen! I mean, what couple--- Grace and Eli SAY they're not a couple, but *pointed look*--- what couple has their parents set things up so they get to spend a night together... unsupervised? We should have seen this coming.]]

Lily went down the rest of the stairs quickly. Rick followed her. In the sofa bed, Eli was just beginning to stir.

"Good morning." Lily said to them as she got to the end of the bed. There was no "good" in her tone.

Eli opened his eyes, seeing Lily and his father staring down at him. His face crinkled up in confusion.

"Grace." Lily said, and Eli opened his eyes a little wider, looking at the figure next to him.

He sat up. "This isn't what it looks like..."

"Grace!" Lily said again, louder this time.

Grace's eyes opened. Realization hit her slowly. "Mom!"

Eli climbed out of the bed, and Grace followed suit. "We were watching movies last night with Jessie and Zoe and we fell asleep," Eli explained.

Lily and Rick looked at each other, each wondering what to believe.

"It's true, mom." Grace said. "Zoe made us watch Titanic, and you know how long that movie is??"

Lily folded her arms across her chest. "This is the truth?"

"Why would I lie?" Grace asked nervously. She snuck a glance over at Eli.

Lily and Rick looked at each other again, sharing a wondering look.

* * *

"Hey, how come no one woke us?" Zoe asked as she and Jessie entered the kitchen to find everyone else at the table, eating breakfast.

Lily fixed the two of them plates of eggs, and toast. "We were just about to... before the food got cold."

Zoe and Jessie joined the rest of them at the crowded table.

Grace looked up, about to say something, but then didn't. Zoe looked at her sister quizzically.

Finally Eli said, in a forced causal tone, "So, how come you two didn't wake Grace and me last night after the movie ended?"

Jessie looked up, ready to answer, and found that her reply was being waited on by more than just Eli or Grace... Rick and Lily also looked very interested in what she had to say.

"Why would we?" Zoe answered before Jessie could. "You two looked really cute sleeping there together."

Zoe smiled, and caught the look on her mother's face. "What?"

Lily turned away, and began putting dishes in the sink. Rick smiled over at Grace and Eli, now that their story had been confirmed, and the two of them began to breathe easier.

[[Rick - Of course I believed them... when they said nothing happened, but... you can never be too sure of anything.]]

[[Lily - Alright, so I doubted them....... *struggles on the words* I was wrong.]]

* * *

"So, I guess I'll see you at school," Grace said to Eli as he prepared to leave. Eli and Jessie were going to be spending the rest of their winter vacation at their aunt's house in Minnesota with their mother.

"Yeah. It was... fun." Eli said about their night together.

Grace smiled, "Yeah, if we leave out this morning. I don't think I'll ever forget the look on my mother's face when I woke up and found her looking down at me."

"Yeah, that was pretty scary," Eli agreed. "Even my Dad had lost his usual calm expression."

They smiled.

[[Grace - It was nice.... If this is how having Rick move in is going to be... *smiles* I could get used to it.]]

* * *

"Grace, are you two dating?"

"Mom!" Grace cried in annoyance. "That's all anyone ever asks me anymore!"

Lily was still waiting for the answer.

"No, we're not." Grace said.

Zoe, just coming into the living room, smiled over at them. "Did Grace get in trouble for sleeping with Eli?"

Lily's eyes widened. "Mom, she means actual SLEEPING together," Grace assured her mother.

"What else would I mean?" Zoe said with a roll of her eyes. Her question went unanswered though, even with the clarification. Zoe sank down on an easy chair, munching on an apple. "Jessie slept in my room. The bed wasn't too small for her."

"That's nice," Lily said, distracted.

"Where did Rick sleep?" Zoe asked. "With you?"

"Yes, with me," Lily answered carefully.

"Oh," Zoe said, not seeming to care.

* * *