Disclaimer: I DO NOT own 7th Heaven, or anything pertaining to the WB.
A/N: Ahh, here I am again, embarking now on the writing of my 13th story. This is the 3rd story in my trilogy, so if you haven't read "Ready For Tomorrow" and "Still Going Strong" prior to this, I advise you to do so. You can see Ready For Tomorrow at and Still Going Strong at . Enjoy!
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In Days Ahead
Chapter One
Part One: The prologue
A few years have passed since Still Going Strong took place.
Sarah and Matt Camden: Emily is now 16, Sean 12, Chloe is 8, and Jack is 5,. Matt is still an OB/GYN, and Sarah still stays at home with the kids. At School, Emily is a junior at Kiva High School, Sean is a 7th grader at Sage Middle School, Chloe is a 4th grader at Jennings, and Jack is a 1st grader. They moved into a bigger house when Jack was 2.
Mary and Carlos: Their Son, Kyle, is 4. Carlos is still a fire fighter, and Mary works at Jennings again. She quit after Kyle was born, but now that he is a preschooler there, she was begun to work again, at the same school her son attends.
Lucy and Kevin: Will, Luke, and Maddy are 8, Liv is 4 and a half. Kevin is still a police officer, and Lucy stays at home with the kids. The triplets are in 4th grade at Jennings, and Liv is in preschool at the same school as her older siblings.
Simon and Cecilia: Simon is still a lawyer, and Cecilia a stay at home mother. Rachel is 13, Ethan is 9, and Charlie is 6. Rachel is an 8th grader at Sage Middle School, Ethan is a 5th grader at Jennings, and Charlie is a 1st grader at Jennings.
Peter and Ruthie: Natalie is 6, and their 2nd child, Amy, is 5. Peter and Ruthie still work up at Jennings Elementary, Peter as the principle and Ruthie as a 1st grade teacher. Natalie is a 1st grader at Jennings, Amy is a Kindergartener.
David and Marie: David (25) is a psychologist and Marie is a nurse at Glenoak Hospital where Matt works as well. They have no children, and are not planning on having them, as they both have highly demanding jobs.
Sam and Hailey: (Yes! Sam got married!) Sam and Hailey got Married 3 and a half years ago. They met in college while Hailey was majoring in screen acting. They announced their engagement at the reception of David and Marie's wedding (causing quite an uproar) and got married 5 months later. The moved to northern California, 3 hours from Glenoak, 15 minutes from Hollywood, where Sam is a business consultant, and Hailey is an actress.
Now that you know all of that, enjoy...I know that that is a lot of kids names to remember (difficult for me too, and I'm the writer!!) I will try to say who's kids are who's (especially the new ones in this story) when I mention them. Now, with out further ado...chapter one.
Chapter One
Part 2: A Typical Morning
Sarah Camden finished tossing 3 lunches into paper sacks. She stapled each and wrote the name of the child that each belonged to on the front in pen. Sean and Chloe filed by the kitchen table, each grabbing the bag with their name. Sarah signed and walked to the bottom of the stairs. She cupped her hands around her mouth.
"Emily Katherine Camden! I suggest that you come down stairs right now! You're going to be late for school. This is the 5th time I've called you! Get a move on!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming." Emily said as she walked down the stairs. Her blonde hair has pulled back into a ponytail, with a ribbon around the ponytail holder. She had her gray backpack slung over one shoulder. She grabbed her lunch off the table, tossed it in her bag, and zipped it up. "Uh! This gray back pack totally ruins my cute outfit!" She complained, motioning to her pink mini-skirt and white top.
"Hey, you were the one who insisted that you had to have gray so that it "matched everything" now weren't you? No complaining. Now out!" Emily sighed dramatically and started for the door.
"Mom can't I please drive the kids to school?" She asked. At 16 and a half, she still loved to drive anyone anywhere, like most newly licensed drivers do.
"No, Emily. We've talked about this. No other passengers, other than your father or myself, until you're 17. You have to have a years experience on your own first!" She said.
"Mother! That's so stupid!" She cried. Sarah shook her head.
"My parents had that same rule for me, and I turned out just fine. I think you'll live. Now go! It's 7:15!" Sarah said. Kiva High School's classes began at promptly 7:30, and Emily had already been tardy more than once.
"Fine!" Emily said. "You're SO no fun." Emily came over and kissed her mother on the cheek like she did every morning, then walked out the door.
"Drive safely!" Sarah called out behind her. After the door closed, she turned to her 3 younger children, who were all still gathered at the table, 2 of which had their lunches in hand.
"OK, Sean, it's 7:18, school starts at 8:00, we need to leave in 27 minutes, at 7:45. Chloe, school starts at 9:00, so you have an hour and 27 minutes, and Jack because of your half day schedule, you start at noon, so you have a long time." She said.
"We know, mom." The three children chorused. She told them the same thing every morning.
"I know, it just makes me feel better to make sure you know. Now, put you lunches in your back packs, and you can go and play for a bit." Chloe and Sean did as they were told and went upstairs.
"But Mama, I don't have a lunch." Jack said. Sarah nodded.
"I know sweetie. Remember, because you have a half day schedule, you eat lunch at home with me." She told him, for the 3rd time this week.
"Oh yeah." He said. "Hey guys, wait for me!" He cried, taking off up the stairs after his older sister and brother. Sarah laughed and looked at her kitchen. The table was covered in bread from making sandwiches, chips, crackers, desserts, and many other lunch materials. She walked over and straightened everything up. By the time she was all done, it was 7:40, and she knew that it was time to call Sean, as it would take at least 5 minutes for all the kids to be in the car. She called him and the other kids and grabbed her car keys. They came down the stairs and Sean grabbed his backpack.
"Mom?" He asked. Sarah didn't look up.
"Yes Sean?" She answered.
"Do I really have to go to school today?" He asked.
"Yes Sean." She replied.
"Darn." He said. Sarah pointed to the garage door and Sean walked out. Chloe turned to her mother.
"Mommy?" She asked.
"Yes Chloe, you have to come, no, you're not old enough to baby sit." She answered, knowing the question that was to come, like it did every morning.
"Fine." She said. She walked to the garage door closely trailed by Jack. Sarah grabbed her purse and followed them out into the car. After dropping Sean off at his middle school, Chloe requested that she be taken to school early for some extra playground time.
"OK." Sarah told her, "But first we have to go and get your back pack." She pulled the car up out side of the garage and opened the garage door. Chloe scurried inside, and emerged a few seconds later with her backpack on. "Do you have your lunch?" Sarah asked. Chloe unzipped her backpack and peeked in.
"Yep." Chloe answered. Sarah nodded and pulled out again. She dropped Chloe off at school. "Bye mommy." She said, leaning in for a kiss before leaping out of the car and bounding toward the playground where her friends were already playing. Sarah shut the automatic mini-van doors, and began to drive again. When Sarah turned the car the opposite way of home, Jack looked up at her.
"Mommy? Aren't we supposed to go the other way?" He asked, eager to get back to his new coloring book.
"Yes, but I have to make a quick stop at the grocery store first." Jack moaned from the back seat. To 5-year-olds, the grocery store was equal to the most boring place on earth, and whenever his mother said she had to make a 'quick stop' there, it always ended up taking forever.
"Do we have to?" He complained.
"Yes we have to." Sarah said, turning into the parking lot. She pulled into a parking spot and shut off the car. "Come on." She said, getting out. She opened her son's door and helped him out of the car. They walked inside the store and Jack moaned again.
"This place is so boring." He said.
"I'm sorry." Sarah told him. "Like I said, we'll only be here for a minute." She grabbed a cart and began to push it down the first isle, getting bread along the way.
"Sure, whatever you say." Jack said and moped along being his mother. They finished exactly 22 minutes and 13 seconds later (we know this thanks to Jack's new spider man watch). They checked out, and headed back to the car. "Hey mom wanna know how long that took?" He asked for the 4th time.
"You've told me 3 times already!" She said.
"It took 22 minutes and 13 seconds." He said, ignoring her first comment.
"Wow." Sarah said. She put the keys in the slot and pulled out.
"Mom can we go to McDonalds for lunch? Please, please, please?" He begged.
"OK." Sarah said. She pulled into the drive-thru line. "Do you want your usual?" She asked with a smile. Jack nodded. "Hi. I'll have a Cheeseburger happy meal, ketchup only, with a Coke to drink." She said. She pulled forward to the window, paid, and got her food.
"Can I have it?" Jack asked, stretching his hands out.
"Not until we get home. I just vacuumed this car." She answered.
"Pooey." Jack pouted. Sarah laughed.
"It'll only be 5 minutes." She told him. They drove the rest of the way home. As soon as Sarah parked the car, Jack ran inside. Sarah followed with his lunch. She gave it to him while she made herself a tuna sandwhich. "Can I have a sip of your coke?" She asked, leaning over and sipping with out waiting for an answer.
"Mother!" Jack complained. Sarah laughed. "I needed that sip!" He cried.
"For what?" She asked, amused.
"For my energy! I have to have a WHOLE cup." Sarah laughed out loud.
"Oh, I'm sorry." She said, pretending to be serious. Jack laughed. "Well then I guess you'll have to have a sip of my milk then. My son has to have his energy." Jack smiled and took a sip from his mother's drink. "Now we're even?" She asked.
"Even." Jack said. They finished their lunch, and before long it was time for Jack to go to school. She walked him up to his 1st grade classroom, which was next to Ruthie's, said goodbye to her son, hello to her sister-in- law, and got back in the car.
"Typical morning!" Sarah said to herself with a sigh. She smiled. "And I like it that way."
A/N: Please Review!
A/N: Ahh, here I am again, embarking now on the writing of my 13th story. This is the 3rd story in my trilogy, so if you haven't read "Ready For Tomorrow" and "Still Going Strong" prior to this, I advise you to do so. You can see Ready For Tomorrow at and Still Going Strong at . Enjoy!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
In Days Ahead
Chapter One
Part One: The prologue
A few years have passed since Still Going Strong took place.
Sarah and Matt Camden: Emily is now 16, Sean 12, Chloe is 8, and Jack is 5,. Matt is still an OB/GYN, and Sarah still stays at home with the kids. At School, Emily is a junior at Kiva High School, Sean is a 7th grader at Sage Middle School, Chloe is a 4th grader at Jennings, and Jack is a 1st grader. They moved into a bigger house when Jack was 2.
Mary and Carlos: Their Son, Kyle, is 4. Carlos is still a fire fighter, and Mary works at Jennings again. She quit after Kyle was born, but now that he is a preschooler there, she was begun to work again, at the same school her son attends.
Lucy and Kevin: Will, Luke, and Maddy are 8, Liv is 4 and a half. Kevin is still a police officer, and Lucy stays at home with the kids. The triplets are in 4th grade at Jennings, and Liv is in preschool at the same school as her older siblings.
Simon and Cecilia: Simon is still a lawyer, and Cecilia a stay at home mother. Rachel is 13, Ethan is 9, and Charlie is 6. Rachel is an 8th grader at Sage Middle School, Ethan is a 5th grader at Jennings, and Charlie is a 1st grader at Jennings.
Peter and Ruthie: Natalie is 6, and their 2nd child, Amy, is 5. Peter and Ruthie still work up at Jennings Elementary, Peter as the principle and Ruthie as a 1st grade teacher. Natalie is a 1st grader at Jennings, Amy is a Kindergartener.
David and Marie: David (25) is a psychologist and Marie is a nurse at Glenoak Hospital where Matt works as well. They have no children, and are not planning on having them, as they both have highly demanding jobs.
Sam and Hailey: (Yes! Sam got married!) Sam and Hailey got Married 3 and a half years ago. They met in college while Hailey was majoring in screen acting. They announced their engagement at the reception of David and Marie's wedding (causing quite an uproar) and got married 5 months later. The moved to northern California, 3 hours from Glenoak, 15 minutes from Hollywood, where Sam is a business consultant, and Hailey is an actress.
Now that you know all of that, enjoy...I know that that is a lot of kids names to remember (difficult for me too, and I'm the writer!!) I will try to say who's kids are who's (especially the new ones in this story) when I mention them. Now, with out further ado...chapter one.
Chapter One
Part 2: A Typical Morning
Sarah Camden finished tossing 3 lunches into paper sacks. She stapled each and wrote the name of the child that each belonged to on the front in pen. Sean and Chloe filed by the kitchen table, each grabbing the bag with their name. Sarah signed and walked to the bottom of the stairs. She cupped her hands around her mouth.
"Emily Katherine Camden! I suggest that you come down stairs right now! You're going to be late for school. This is the 5th time I've called you! Get a move on!"
"I'm coming, I'm coming." Emily said as she walked down the stairs. Her blonde hair has pulled back into a ponytail, with a ribbon around the ponytail holder. She had her gray backpack slung over one shoulder. She grabbed her lunch off the table, tossed it in her bag, and zipped it up. "Uh! This gray back pack totally ruins my cute outfit!" She complained, motioning to her pink mini-skirt and white top.
"Hey, you were the one who insisted that you had to have gray so that it "matched everything" now weren't you? No complaining. Now out!" Emily sighed dramatically and started for the door.
"Mom can't I please drive the kids to school?" She asked. At 16 and a half, she still loved to drive anyone anywhere, like most newly licensed drivers do.
"No, Emily. We've talked about this. No other passengers, other than your father or myself, until you're 17. You have to have a years experience on your own first!" She said.
"Mother! That's so stupid!" She cried. Sarah shook her head.
"My parents had that same rule for me, and I turned out just fine. I think you'll live. Now go! It's 7:15!" Sarah said. Kiva High School's classes began at promptly 7:30, and Emily had already been tardy more than once.
"Fine!" Emily said. "You're SO no fun." Emily came over and kissed her mother on the cheek like she did every morning, then walked out the door.
"Drive safely!" Sarah called out behind her. After the door closed, she turned to her 3 younger children, who were all still gathered at the table, 2 of which had their lunches in hand.
"OK, Sean, it's 7:18, school starts at 8:00, we need to leave in 27 minutes, at 7:45. Chloe, school starts at 9:00, so you have an hour and 27 minutes, and Jack because of your half day schedule, you start at noon, so you have a long time." She said.
"We know, mom." The three children chorused. She told them the same thing every morning.
"I know, it just makes me feel better to make sure you know. Now, put you lunches in your back packs, and you can go and play for a bit." Chloe and Sean did as they were told and went upstairs.
"But Mama, I don't have a lunch." Jack said. Sarah nodded.
"I know sweetie. Remember, because you have a half day schedule, you eat lunch at home with me." She told him, for the 3rd time this week.
"Oh yeah." He said. "Hey guys, wait for me!" He cried, taking off up the stairs after his older sister and brother. Sarah laughed and looked at her kitchen. The table was covered in bread from making sandwiches, chips, crackers, desserts, and many other lunch materials. She walked over and straightened everything up. By the time she was all done, it was 7:40, and she knew that it was time to call Sean, as it would take at least 5 minutes for all the kids to be in the car. She called him and the other kids and grabbed her car keys. They came down the stairs and Sean grabbed his backpack.
"Mom?" He asked. Sarah didn't look up.
"Yes Sean?" She answered.
"Do I really have to go to school today?" He asked.
"Yes Sean." She replied.
"Darn." He said. Sarah pointed to the garage door and Sean walked out. Chloe turned to her mother.
"Mommy?" She asked.
"Yes Chloe, you have to come, no, you're not old enough to baby sit." She answered, knowing the question that was to come, like it did every morning.
"Fine." She said. She walked to the garage door closely trailed by Jack. Sarah grabbed her purse and followed them out into the car. After dropping Sean off at his middle school, Chloe requested that she be taken to school early for some extra playground time.
"OK." Sarah told her, "But first we have to go and get your back pack." She pulled the car up out side of the garage and opened the garage door. Chloe scurried inside, and emerged a few seconds later with her backpack on. "Do you have your lunch?" Sarah asked. Chloe unzipped her backpack and peeked in.
"Yep." Chloe answered. Sarah nodded and pulled out again. She dropped Chloe off at school. "Bye mommy." She said, leaning in for a kiss before leaping out of the car and bounding toward the playground where her friends were already playing. Sarah shut the automatic mini-van doors, and began to drive again. When Sarah turned the car the opposite way of home, Jack looked up at her.
"Mommy? Aren't we supposed to go the other way?" He asked, eager to get back to his new coloring book.
"Yes, but I have to make a quick stop at the grocery store first." Jack moaned from the back seat. To 5-year-olds, the grocery store was equal to the most boring place on earth, and whenever his mother said she had to make a 'quick stop' there, it always ended up taking forever.
"Do we have to?" He complained.
"Yes we have to." Sarah said, turning into the parking lot. She pulled into a parking spot and shut off the car. "Come on." She said, getting out. She opened her son's door and helped him out of the car. They walked inside the store and Jack moaned again.
"This place is so boring." He said.
"I'm sorry." Sarah told him. "Like I said, we'll only be here for a minute." She grabbed a cart and began to push it down the first isle, getting bread along the way.
"Sure, whatever you say." Jack said and moped along being his mother. They finished exactly 22 minutes and 13 seconds later (we know this thanks to Jack's new spider man watch). They checked out, and headed back to the car. "Hey mom wanna know how long that took?" He asked for the 4th time.
"You've told me 3 times already!" She said.
"It took 22 minutes and 13 seconds." He said, ignoring her first comment.
"Wow." Sarah said. She put the keys in the slot and pulled out.
"Mom can we go to McDonalds for lunch? Please, please, please?" He begged.
"OK." Sarah said. She pulled into the drive-thru line. "Do you want your usual?" She asked with a smile. Jack nodded. "Hi. I'll have a Cheeseburger happy meal, ketchup only, with a Coke to drink." She said. She pulled forward to the window, paid, and got her food.
"Can I have it?" Jack asked, stretching his hands out.
"Not until we get home. I just vacuumed this car." She answered.
"Pooey." Jack pouted. Sarah laughed.
"It'll only be 5 minutes." She told him. They drove the rest of the way home. As soon as Sarah parked the car, Jack ran inside. Sarah followed with his lunch. She gave it to him while she made herself a tuna sandwhich. "Can I have a sip of your coke?" She asked, leaning over and sipping with out waiting for an answer.
"Mother!" Jack complained. Sarah laughed. "I needed that sip!" He cried.
"For what?" She asked, amused.
"For my energy! I have to have a WHOLE cup." Sarah laughed out loud.
"Oh, I'm sorry." She said, pretending to be serious. Jack laughed. "Well then I guess you'll have to have a sip of my milk then. My son has to have his energy." Jack smiled and took a sip from his mother's drink. "Now we're even?" She asked.
"Even." Jack said. They finished their lunch, and before long it was time for Jack to go to school. She walked him up to his 1st grade classroom, which was next to Ruthie's, said goodbye to her son, hello to her sister-in- law, and got back in the car.
"Typical morning!" Sarah said to herself with a sigh. She smiled. "And I like it that way."
A/N: Please Review!