Chapter 6: Dreams

Brian stared up at the gumdrop jar with a sparkle in his eyes. He had accompanied his mother into town to pick up a few supplies. He had promised Michaela he wouldn't beg for candy if he could come with her, but now he found that the candy was just too hard to resist. He looked over at his mother, hoping she'd see the desperation in his face, but she was too consumed in a conversation with Dorothy and Olive, who by the way, had to work out a living arrangement since Olive's return. Brian could hear them discussing how Dorothy had moved into the boarding house so Olive could have Abagail's room to sleep in. After all, Olive was kin.

Brian was about to ask Mr. Bray if he could sneak some gumdrops anyway, but he was distracted.

"Psst!" Brian looked over to see Anthony and Mary standing out on the porch. He looked over to see his mother laughing with Dorothy and Olive, knowing that it was good that his mother and Miss Olive were working out their differences.

He decided she wouldn't be finished for a while, so he walked out onto the porch.

"What's goin' on?" Brian asked his friends.

"We're goin' fishin' down at Willow Creek. Ya wanna come with us?" Anthony asked.

"I'll have to ask my ma," Brian replied. "She says we're havin' company over tonight. Jenny and Clayton are comin' over for dinner. She won't want me to go get all dirty."

"We'll I already asked Miss Grace, and Mary asked Horace. C'mon. Just go ask her."

"She'll say no," Brian replied.

"Well, she don't have to know," Mary said with a grin.

"I'll get in trouble."

"Please come with us? It won't be no fun if you ain't there," Anthony pleaded. Brian swallowed hard and decided there would be no harm in going fishing for a few minutes. He wouldn't stay out long, so he could get cleaned up before dinner.

"Well, alright. Just for a little while."

"We got a fishin' pole and everything for ya," Mary said with a smile. The three rushed off toward Willow Creek, and Michaela was none the wiser.

Inside the mercantile, Loren was dusting off the counter after having sold a sack of flour, which had been leaking a bit. He grumbled something under his breath as he did so. Olive heard him and simply shook her head.

"I really should be getting home. Matthew's off at the ranch, Colleen's busy doing homework at Becky's, and I left Sully in charge of the boys, who are becoming more and more rambunctious each day. I'm afraid of what trouble they're going to get into when they start walking," Michaela laughed.

"Oh just wait till they start growin' up," Dorothy laughed, shaking her head. "They're gonna get into all kinds of things."

"Oh, don't you worry, Dr. Mike," Olive replied. "With those three older ones you've got, they're gonna have lots of good examples. Matthew, Colleen, and Brian are all fine children."

"Speakin' of Brian, where'd he go?" Loren wondered, looking over at the candy jars. "He was just over there a minute ago." Michaela immediately became alarmed.

"Brian?!" she called out. Myra came walking into the store. "Myra, have you seen Brian?"

"Sure did. I just saw him runnin' out towards the woods with Anthony and Mary. I think they had fishin' poles." Michaela sighed heavily.

"Thank you Myra." She looked at Olive and Dorothy. "We're having company for supper, and he knew that. I distinctly told him this morning that we had to get home right after visiting the mercantile." She shook her head.

"What were you sayin' about those children?" Dorothy asked Olive, raising an eyebrow.

"Brian's never done nothin' like this before, has he?" Olive wondered. "I never knew him to directly disobey anybody."

"Well," Michaela began, "shortly after Sully and I had Connor and Daniel, Brian grew jealous and acted out as a result. He ran off and went to my mother and father's house." She shook her head. "I should be getting home. I'll send Sully out to get him." Michaela quickly paid Loren for her supplies instead of having him credit it to her account. She rushed out of the mercantile, got into the wagon, and started toward the homestead.

The house was quiet since everyone in the family was off doing something except for Sully and the boys. Sully had grown bored, and was trying to keep himself entertained. The boys were have a wonderful time. They were laughing and giggling as their father made faces at them.

"I'm glad you two are havin' fun," he said with a laugh. He stuck his tongue out at them, and both boys did the same thing. They had begun mimicking their parents' facial expressions lately, and sometimes it was highly laughable, because they would mimic the looks upon their mother's face when she was frustrated during a mood swing.

"Dada!" Daniel cried out with a giggle. Sully laughed and scooped both boys into his arms. He stood and started toward the stairs. He walked up to the boys' room and put them down in their beds. They had grown too big for their cradles, so those had been stored in the barn. Sully realized that he could re-use those cradles for the new baby, or babies as far as he was concerned. The cradle he had been making had gotten a large split in the base of it.

"You two don't mind me givin' these cradles to your new sisters do ya?" Sully asked. Connor grinned and pointed up at his father. "See, your ma don't believe me when I tell her I think it's gonna be two girls. I've been havin' all these dreams lately, and most of the time, your ma is havin' two little girls. I don't tell her about 'em, 'cause I know she's worried enough about givin' birth to the one baby. She's been through a lot already, and I don't want her to go frettin'. But between the three of us, I'm pretty sure we're gonna have two more girls in the house by Christmas."

Sully heard the wagon approaching, and he knew his wife was home.

"You two have a good nap." He left the room, closing the door behind himself. He walked downstairs just in time to see his wife storming through the front door. At first he thought it was a mood swing. "Michaela?"

"We have a serious problem," she replied, crossing her arms and stopping just in front of him.

"Did I do somethin'?"
"No," she answered. "Remember this morning when I told Brian we had to come straight home after going to the mercantile?"
"Yeah."

"Well, while I was at the mercantile, Brian ran off with Anthony and Mary to go fishing." Sully swallowed hard and immediately regretted what he said next.

"So?" Michaela raised and eye brow and then put her hands on her hips.

"So?!" Michaela asked. "He directly disobeyed me!" Sully cleared his throat and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Don't you think you're makin' a little too much out of this?"

"I think I'm making it out to be exactly the way it is!" Michaela replied angrily. "You actually don't care that our son ran off to go fishing without telling me, after I told him we had to go straight home?"

"I think he's growin' up, and he needs to do stuff with his friends," Sully pointed out.

"So it's alright with you that he ran off like he did?"

"No, he should have asked you first. But I'm just saying that I think you're overreacting."

"Overreacting?!" Michaela yelled. "I'm sorry if my being worried about our son is overreacting in your opinion!" She stormed up the stairs, and Sully heard the bedroom door slam behind her. He sighed, waited ten seconds, and started up the stairs to try to calm his wife down. He knew from previous experiences that it took approximately ten seconds for Michaela to fight off the urge to cry, so by the time he reached the bedroom she would have calmed down just enough to hear him out.

Once he stood before their bedroom door, he could hear her blowing her nose on a handkerchief. Yes, it was time to go in. He rapped on the door and slowly turned the knob, opening it.

"Mind if I come in?"

"Why not? You built this house," she replied as she took a seat on the edge of the bed. Sully sighed and sat down next to his wife.

"I should have been more sensitive to your feelings."

"You're patronizing me, aren't you?"

"Michaela, hear me out." She was silent, so he figured it was safe to continue. "You're right. He shouldn't have gone fishin' today. He knows we're havin' guests, but he went anyway. But, you can't keep him on a leash. He's growin' up."

"He's not even ten-year-old, Sully," Michaela replied, shaking her head.

"But he will be real soon. I'm just sayin' that he probably wouldn't have gone off like that if you'd let him do things like that more often."

"What are you talking about? He goes fishing all the time."

"With me or with Colleen and Matthew. Ya gotta let him spend more time with his friends." Michaela swallowed hard and nodded her head.

"You're right," she whispered. Sully hadn't expected that.

"I'm what?" he asked with a grin.

"Oh, you heard me," Michaela replied. Sully knew she hated to say that. Sully smiled and kissed his wife's hand.

"See, that wasn't so hard to say. But I'm sorry too. You were right that Brian shouldn't have disobeyed you. I'm sure he thought you wouldn't mind." Michaela shrugged.

"Well, Jenny and Clayton will be here in three hours. I need go downstairs and start dinner. Colleen should be home soon to help me."

"I'll help ya till she gets here. The boys are down for their nap anyway."
"Thank you," Michaela replied, kissing his cheek. She took his hand and led him out into the hall and down the stairs. They started to prepare dinner, and Sully couldn't help but sneak kisses to his wife every chance he got. He found her irresistible when she was happy, and now that she was pregnant, she had that glow about her again.

Once the food was on the stove and in the oven, Michaela cleaned her hands off and turned to see Sully staring out the window.

"Is something on your mind?" Sully turned from the window and walked over toward his wife.

"Nothin' important."

"You know you can tell me."

"I know," he replied with a smile. "I was just thinkin' about how lucky we are to have the kids we've got."

"And the one on the way."
"Two," Sully corrected. Michaela rolled her eyes.

"You're still sure about that, aren't you?"

"Yep," he replied.

"Tell me why," Michaela replied. Sully sighed heavily. He hadn't intended to tell his wife about his dreams, but the way she was looking at him made him want to tell her everything.

"Alright," he replied. He led her over to one of the wing-backed chairs and sat down. Michaela sat down on his lap, draping her legs over the arm of the chair. Her arms wrapped around his neck, and Sully's hand caressed her knee as his other rubbed her back.

"I've been havin' dreams at night," he explained.

"Dreams? What kind of dreams?"

"Well, in each dream, all the kids are there with me, and we're waiting for news of the birth. The doctor comes out and says we have two girls. Each dream is the same but a little different. In each dream, we have twin girls."

"That doesn't mean anything, Sully. Your mind could just be giving you these dreams, because you know you want two little girls." Sully shrugged.

"Ya never know."

"To be honest, I've been having dreams at night as well. In my dreams, I always have a little girl."

"Just one?"
"Yeah."
"Well, I s'pose we'll have to wait 'til December to see which of us is right," Sully concluded.

"But you're forgetting one important thing."
"What's that?"

"It could be a boy."

"I still think it's a girl."

"If it's not?"

"It will be."

"But if it's not," Michaela asked softly, running her fingers through his curly locks.

"If it's not a girl, I still be just as happy as I am right now," he replied. He cupped her face in his hands and gave her a reassuring kiss. "But I'm sure it's a girl." Michaela laughed again and heard a horse approaching.

"That must be Colleen," she replied. Colleen had become quite skilled at horseback riding with the help of her big brother and Sully. Michaela stood and smoothed out her skirt.

"If ya want, I'll go get Brian and bring him home."

"That would be nice. Thank you," Michaela replied. She bent down to kiss Sully before going to stir the stew on the stove. Sully started out the door and smiled when he saw his daughter stabling her mother's horse. She didn't have her own yet, but Sully planned on buying her one for her fourteenth birthday. Luckily, the children all had birthday's very close together. Brian would be turning ten in early June, Colleen would be fourteen in late June, and Matthew would be seventeen in early July. It was hard to believe how quickly they were growing up. Sully only hoped that he would have another daughter like Colleen to watch grow up. He was sure that any blood daughter of his and Michaela's would surely look like her ma.

"Hey pa," Colleen greeted her father.

"Hey. You get your homework done?"

"Sure did. Becky and I are gonna study again tomorrow after school," she said with a smile. Sully smiled, realizing that his daughter had started to speak more like Michaela. Michaela would sometimes correct the children when they didn't speak properly, but Colleen had picked up on the habit of speaking correctly a lot more quickly that Matthew and Brian had. It was interesting to see this slow transformation. She would be going off to college in a few years, and Sully was sure she would turn out a lot like Michaela.

"Alright. Make sure you tell your ma. I'm goin' off to find your brother."

"Which one?"

"Brian," Sully replied. "He took off and went fishin' without tellin' your ma."

"Is she mad?" Colleen asked worriedly, knowing that Michaela's mood swings came and went unexpectedly.

"She's fine now," Sully promised. "Go on inside." Sully brought his horse out of the barn, hopped onto his back, and started off, figuring the boy had gone to Willow Creek since it was nearest to town. Pup and Wolf both started after him, and were soon leading the way.

As Sully rode, he listened for signs of the children's laughter, and before too long, he could hear Brian's distinct laugh.

He dismounted his horse and let him graze for a bit.

"Stay boys," Sully whispered to the dogs. Pup and Wolf obediently sat upon the ground to await Sully's return. Sully hid himself behind a large pine tree, and he saw Anthony and Mary laughing as Brian sat on his bottom in the creek. Brian was laughing too.

"Sorry Brian," Anthony said with a chuckle. "Didn't mean to laugh. I think that fish was bigger than you."

"I best be getting home," Brian replied, standing up and walking out of the creek. "My ma's probably mad."

"You're right," Sully spoke up, revealing himself to the children.

"Pa!" Brian exclaimed. "What are you doin' here?"

"I came to get ya. Your ma was awful mad when ya left without tellin' her. She told ya that we were havin' company this mornin'. Ya didn't listen to her."

"I'm sorry pa. I just wanted to have some fun," Brian said, looking honestly guilty.

"I ain't the one you gotta be apologizin' to. When we get home, I suggest that you talk to your ma about this."

"I will," Brian replied, looking down. "Anthony, Mary, you two best be getting home too."

"We were just goin', Mr. Sully," Anthony said quickly.

"Well, get your things. I'll take you two back into town before we head home."

By the time Sully and Brian had arrived home, Jenny and Clayton had already arrived and dinner was being placed upon the table. Matthew was helping Michaela put Connor and Daniel into two high chairs, specially made by Sully. Colleen and Jenny were placing the stew, biscuits, and chicken upon the table.

"Thank goodness you're home," Michaela said sternly, looking at Brian. "Go upstairs and get yourself cleaned up."

"Yes ma," Brian replied. Sully walked over to kiss his wife.

"We had a long talk," Sully said quietly.

"About?"

"About how he won't be doin' that again without tellin' ya."

"Thank you, Sully," Michaela replied with a smile.

Once everyone was served and seated at the table, dinner began. Clayton and Sully were talking while Michaela and Jenny talked excitedly about the baby on the way. Jenny expressed how she couldn't wait to start a family with Clayton, but with the new teaching job, she thought she could wait a year or so before having a baby.

Matthew and Colleen helped Connor and Daniel, who quite enjoyed the stew. Their food had to be prepared special, however. Colleen had made sure to mash up all of the vegetables and leave out the large chunks of meat. It had also been cooled a bit, but the boys were enjoying trying to feed themselves never the less.

Brian was very quiet, not saying much except for politely asking for Colleen to pass the pitcher of milk.

"So, Clayton's tellin' me that he did get that his job's goin' well with Miss Olive," Sully said, looking at Matthew.

"Yep. Havin' Clayton around sure is a help to me. Two hundred cattle is a lot to handle, and she's gonna need you around when I go off to college," Matthew pointed out.

"Well, it'll be tough not havin' you around to show me the ropes, but I'm sure I'll have the hang of it before ya go," Clayton replied with a laugh.

"Matthew, I'm sure you're gonna do a wonderful job in college," Jenny said with a proud smile. "You're my top student in your age range, so I'm sure you're gonna have no trouble."

"Matthew's already been accepted into a school," Michaela replied. "And I'm sure we're all happy about the choice Matthew's making."

"Sure are," Colleen replied, proud that her big brother was going to go to college.

"Well, I owe my thanks to you, ma," Matthew replied. "I wouldn't have even though about goin' if it wasn't for you encouragin' me." Michaela felt tears coming to her eyes, but she fought them off. Being emotional had become something she was quite good at lately. But it was for a good reason. Her baby was healthy and on the way.

"He's right, Dr. Mike," Jenny replied. "I only hope I can be as good a ma as you are someday." Michaela blushed and took a sip of milk, not knowing what to say. Sully grinned over his glass of milk. He loved to watch Michaela when she was being flattered.

After dinner, Jenny and Clayton headed home for the night while Matthew went outside to do his chores in the barn. Colleen worked at doing the dishes while Brian went upstairs to do the homework he had neglected while he was fishing.

Michaela and Sully were in the washroom, cleaning the boys up after dinner. Connor and Daniel were more interested in splashing each other in the washtub than getting clean. But as long as they weren't covered in food anymore, Michaela and Sully were happy.

"I think they'll go right to sleep tonight," Sully laughed. "They're gonna wear out real soon." Michaela nodded. She sighed heavily and knew it was getting late.

"Can you finish up here? I think I should go speak with Brian."

"Sure. I'll have the boys put down to bed real soon." Michaela left the room and started down the hall to Brian's room. She knocked.

"Brian?"

"Come in," he said glumly. Michaela slowly opened the door, thinking of what she was going to say to her son that Sully hadn't said already.

"How is your homework coming along?"

"It's fine," he replied, putting his book aside and standing up.

"Your father told me he spoke to you this afternoon."

"Yeah," he replied.

"What did he tell you?" Brian took a deep breath.

"He told me I ain't allowed to run off with my friends without tellin' ya. He also said that if it happens again, I'll have to do extra chores for a week."

"Alright," Michaela replied. "What do you think about that?"

"I think I just wanted to go have fun with my friends."

"Brian, I'm sorry if I've made you feel as if I don't want you to go play with your friends. I don't mind as long as you ask. I love you, and I want you to be happy."

"I know," Brian replied quietly. "I'm sorry, ma. I didn't mean to make ya mad. I just thought it'd be fun to go fishin' today is all."

"Next time I tell you we have to come straight home, I expect you to listen to me."

"I will. Honest, ma."

"Alright," Michaela replied.

"Do you forgive me?"

"Well, on one condition?"

"What?" Brian asked with a sigh.

"Come here and give me a hug." Brian's face brightened, and he hurried over to embrace his mother. "You're forgiven."

Late that evening, the kids had all gone to bed, and their oil lamps were out. Sully was downstairs putting out the lamps in the kitchen and den, while Michaela was splashing some cold water on her face in the washroom. The nausea had hit her again, and she was disappointed, because now she didn't feel like being romantic with Sully, and that was her favorite part of going to bed at night.

Once she had freshened up, she retreated the bedroom and snuggled up under the covers. She fell asleep quickly after such a long day, and she was soon whisked away into a dream.

"Michaela?" Sully asked as he walked into the clinic. Michaela smiled, looking up from her textbook. "It's time to go home." Michaela stood from her desk, knowing that her children needed her at home. It had been hectic since the birth.

"Help me in the other room?" Michaela asked.

'Course." They retreated into the side room together, and came upon two cradles. "Look at 'em, Michaela. I told ya."

"Yes you did," Michaela laughed. "Two little girls. I'm sorry I doubted you."

"You had reasons," Sully replied. "You're the doctor." Michaela laughed and kissed her husband's cheek.

"Let's take these little ladies home so they can play with their brothers and sister." They scooped the girls up into their arms and started out the door.

The girls were both born with the softest, smallest amount of blonde hair, and their eyes were beautiful and bright. They looked just like their mother, and Sully beamed with pride at seeing his wife and daughters.

Once they arrived at the homestead, Colleen and Brian were sitting on the porch with Connor and Brian. The twin boys were running about after Pup and Wolf, and there was no sign of Matthew. A sinking feeling in Michaela's heart told her that her son was off at college.

"Ma, Connor and Daniel did real good today," Brian said with a grin. "They helped me milk the cow, and they helped brush down Flash."

"They're growing up," Michaela replied with a laugh. "Here, help me with your sisters. Sully got out of the wagon and took one baby, while Michaela handed the other to Brian.

"You're a wonderful big brother, Brian," Michaela said, beaming with pride.

"Thanks ma," he answered. The family settled down on the steps of the porch. Connor and Daniel hurried to look at their sisters.

"Babies," they said with big grins. They were always so careful with their baby sisters, and were very glad they weren't the youngest in the family anymore.

"That's right," Michaela whispered. "Your little sisters."

Michaela sat up quickly to find Sully just shutting the door behind him.

"You okay?" he asked her. Michaela's eyes were shining, and Sully wondered if she was upset, but a smile spread across her face, telling him differently.

"Yes," she whispered. "Sully, I had a dream!"

"A dream? What was it about?"

"Our babies. Our daughters," she whispered. Sully smiled and crawled into bed beside his wife.

"As in two?"

"Yes. I think you're rubbing off on me," she laughed. Sully raised an eyebrow and took his wife's hand in his.

"Don't worry about what I think, Michaela. You just keep yourself and our baby healthy. I can't wait until he or she is born, and if our dreams are right, I'll be just as happy."

"I know. You've told me a million times over that you'd be happy with whatever we're blessed with, but I can't help but feel that you'd be a little disappointed if we don't have a daughter."

"I won't be disappointed. I'm havin' a baby with the woman I love. There ain't no disappointment in that." He kissed her reassuringly. Michaela smiled, and laid back down in the bed. She yawned and closed her eyes. Sully's arm pulled her close, and tenderly rubbed her arm.

"Sully?"

"Hmm?"

"We're still naming our first daughter Katie, aren't we?" Michaela asked. Sully closed his eyes and rested his head against the pillow.

"Sure, if you still want to."

"I do," Michaela replied. She smiled a little. "Katherine Elizabeth Charlotte Sully." Sully smiled, still loving the sound of that. Eight months ago, he wasn't sure if he was having two sons or two daughters, and then he'd been blessed with two of the most amazing boys he'd ever known. Now he was going through it all again, and he had to admit it would be nice to finally have a Katie in his life.

"Then when Katie gets here, she'll get the name she's been waitin' for." Sully kissed the side of Michaela's head and nuzzled his nose against her neck.

"Mmm," Michaela moaned as Sully's hand gently massaged her back. "That feels wonderful." Sully began to kiss her neck, and just as he was about to start kissing her mouth, he heard a soft snore escaping from her mouth. He had to bite his lip to keep from laughing. She was so relaxed that she'd fallen asleep.

"G'nite," he whispered. "I love you." His fingers laced with hers, and he held her for the rest of the night as her head rested against his heart.