*I got the idea for this title from the song "Bad Day" by Daniel Powter
This takes place after a day at the cheerleading camp that Anna Elizabeth mentioned in "Baseball, Broadway, and an Old Flame".
Killian had just thrown away the remnants of his to-go meal from Granny's. It had just been him today – Emma and Belle had taken their little ones to see the movie Trolls after Emma got home from work, while the cheerleading coach was taking the girls for pizza as a reward for all their hard work at camp this week.
Just then, Anna Elizabeth came through the door, and Killian asked, "Hello, love. How was practice today?"
"It was bloody fantastic, Dad," Anna Elizabeth replied.
Killian frowned at her answer and turned to face her. He became worried when he saw her tear-stained cheeks.
"Anna Elizabeth, what happened?"
"Nothing," Anna Elizabeth told him, as she began making her way to her room.
Killian followed her as he said, "I can see you've been crying, love. Just tell me what's wrong, so I can help."
As Anna Elizabeth reached her room, she turned to face him and yelled, "How? By feeding me milk and cookies? I'm not a little kid anymore – that's not going to solve anything."
And with that, she went into her room and slammed the door behind her.
Killian sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. Anna Elizabeth was normally pretty open about what was bothering her and seldom lost her temper, but he supposed that everyone had those days.
He couldn't stand the thought of his daughter hurting. He just wanted to go in there and make it all okay. But he knew that the best thing for him to do was to let her be for now.
With that thought in mind, he made his way to the living room to watch some TV.
Two hours later, Killian heard footsteps coming into the garage from his place under the hood of his truck.
He joked, "I knew you couldn't stay cooped up in your room for too long – you'd have to eat eventually."
Though he couldn't see her, Anna Elizabeth rolled her eyes at him.
When he raised his head back up, he saw the Chips-Ahoy package in her hands. He grinned as he told her, "I thought you said cookies couldn't fix anything."
Anna Elizabeth couldn't help but smile as she said, "You're a dork, Dad."
"Perhaps, but I made you smile, love," Killian told her.
Anna Elizabeth's smile grew as she asked, "Shall I make us some hot tea?" in a spot-on British accent.
Killian returned her smile as he answered her question, "That sounds wonderful, love." He then commented, "And your accent is quite convincing."
"Well, I am half English," Anna Elizabeth responded.
"Well, let's see if you can make tea worthy of your heritage," Killian told her.
He then reached to run his fingers through her hair, but Anna Elizabeth backed away and pointed out, "Dad, your hands are covered in grease."
"Quite right, love. Why don't we go inside, and I'll get cleaned up, and you can make the tea," Killian suggested.
Anna Elizabeth nodded before she made her way inside with Killian right behind her.
When Anna Elizabeth and Killian sat down at the table, he took a sip of his tea and gave her a thumbs up.
He then carefully surmised, "You seem to be in better spirits, love. I would assume that means you're ready to talk about what happened."
Anna Elizabeth set her mug down before she sighed and said, "Maybe," with a downcast expression.
Killian then reached over and ran his fingers through her hair as he pointed out, "Despite what you think, Anna Elizabeth, I am capable of dealing with the problems of a teenage girl. Who do you think helped your Aunt Belle through her first break up?"
Anna Elizabeth looked up then as she replied, "You mean after her and my dad had to stop you from wanting to find the guy and give him a black eye? Or worse?"
Killian couldn't help but chuckle as he admitted, "You do have a point there, love." He then took a breath and continued, "But I was still there for her, and I have always been there for you, Anna Elizabeth. You do know that I'm a good listener."
Anna Elizabeth looked thoughtful for a moment before she apologized, "Well, first of all, I just want to apologize for yelling."
"It's quite alright, Anna Elizabeth. You want to tell me what that was all about, love?"
Anna Elizabeth nodded before she took a deep breath and stated, "It's the girls on the squad."
"They're still giving you a hard time," Killian observed.
"Yeah. But today they took it a step further," Anna Elizabeth told him.
"How do you mean?" Killian questioned.
"The last few days we've been working on the new routine for the first pep rally in a few weeks. I already have it down, but some of the other girls are having trouble. When they found out that Audrey had been helping me, they accused both of us of going to the coach ahead of time and learning it," Anna Elizabeth explained.
"I seriously doubt that your coach would show favoritism to the two of you," Killian surmised.
"She wouldn't. But everyone believes it because I picked up the routine easily, and Audrey is captain," Anna Elizabeth frustratedly told him.
She became emotional as she continued, "And now because of me, Audrey is going to have a hard time. It isn't fair."
At that point, Killian pulled her in a for a hug and began stroking her blonde curls.
When they pulled away, he said, "I'm so sorry, love. But this isn't your fault. Audrey is your friend, and she offered to help you. And as far as the routine goes, you've always been a quick learner – it's part of your nature. Those girls just took those things and twisted to suit their own purposes."
"Which is?" Anna Elizabeth asked.
"It sounds like to me that they're jealous, love," Killian observed.
"Of Audrey? Sure – she's the captain. But me? Some freshman?" Anna Elizabeth pointed out.
"Yes, love, of you. They see how good you are, and they want you to fail. They want to believe you're not good enough, so you'll stop believing it," Killian replied.
Anna Elizabeth took several minutes to consider his words before she surmised, "That actually makes sense."
Killian nodded before he perceived, "And I also know that it bothers you that they don't realize how hard you've been working."
Anna Elizabeth nodded before she elaborated, "I'm trying so hard to show that I belong on the squad, but it's like it doesn't even matter. I'm still just the freshman kiss-up."
Killian then told her, "Well, love, the best revenge you can have is to prove them wrong."
"How do you know it'll work?" she asked.
"I've had to do it myself," Killian said.
"Like when?" Anna Elizabeth curiously asked.
"For starters, when I first moved here. As you've already experienced, not everyone wants to make you feel welcome. Some people thought your father was daft for hiring me. They accused him of nepotism," Killian started.
"Why?"
"Because of the lifestyle I had been living with Milah. We were traveling all over the country with no permanent address or career. We both did a string of odd jobs wherever we were staying to keep our heads above water. They deemed me irresponsible, among other things," Killian explained.
"But that's so stupid. My dad wouldn't have hired you if you couldn't do the work. And besides, you wanted to move and live here," Anna Elizabeth pointed out.
Killian nodded before he added, "Aye. They were wrong in a lot of ways, love. And that was only the beginning – they also didn't think I could take care of you after your parents died."
"Well, I bet they're eating their words now," Anna Elizabeth said satisfactorily.
Killian grinned at her before he continued, "You see, love, I knew what the truth was, and I continued to work hard because that's what I wanted to do. And in the process, I did prove them wrong.
And you, Anna Elizabeth, will do the same thing. It may take some time, but those other girls will see that you deserve your spot on the squad."
Anna Elizabeth smiled at him before she pulled him in for a hug. She then said, "Thank you. I'm so glad that you're my dad."
Killian squeezed her harder as he kissed her forehead in response.
As they pulled away, he then told her, "And I'm so glad that you're my daughter."
Anna Elizabeth smiled brightly in response before she joked, "So, how mad would you be if I rode away on the back of a motorcycle after graduation?"
Killian shook his head at her before he told her, "Go read a book, Anna Elizabeth."
Anna Elizabeth giggled before going back to her room, taking her tea with her.
As Killian continued to drink his tea, he couldn't help but become reflective.
His brother had considered himself partly responsible for Milah's decision to leave Killian – Liam was the one who had asked his younger brother to stay. Just like how Anna Elizabeth was blaming herself for the other cheerleaders accusing Audrey – both of them were always incredibly hard on themselves. There were times when Killian wished that Anna Elizabeth hadn't inherited those traits from her father.
Killian smiled sadly at the fact that if Liam were still alive, he knew what would have happened if Anna Elizabeth would have stormed through the house like she had. Elsa would have had to play referee between her daughter and husband's stubbornness while reminding the latter that that their daughter was exactly like him.
Even after all the years that had passed, it was still hard on Killian to know that his brother and sister-in-law weren't there to watch their daughter grow up. But, he knew that they were looking down, and they were so proud of the person that Anna Elizabeth was becoming and how he and Emma were raising her.
He knew that all of problems that Anna Elizabeth faced wouldn't be solved with one conversation, and that breaking through her stubborn and independent nature wouldn't always be easy – especially as she got older. However, he did know that the strength and courage that Brennan and Elizabeth had passed down to Liam, Killian, and Belle resided in Anna Elizabeth as well. And that nothing would be able to stop her from always being her best.