Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
It was almost 2 in the morning when cries filled the Reynolds' home. The twins had been home for about 4 days, and neither Mark nor Maddy had gotten any sleep since. Mark rolled around in bed as soon as the crying started, his soldier instincts kicking in. "I'll get it." Mark said kissing his slightly awake wife on the head as he got up to tend his crying baby. "Hey sweetheart. What's wrong? Are you hungry?" he asked Maicey as he walked over to her crib and picked her up, taking her out of the room so she wouldn't wake her brother. Mark went and warmed up a bottle in the kitchen before walking back in the baby roon to sit and feed his daughter in the rocking chair. They sat there rocking back and forth for an hour and Maicey showed no signs of going to sleep any time soon.
"Maice, my little angel, I love you and want to spend every second with you but please go back to sleep. Daddy is so tired." he told his daughter as she grabbed his finger and put it in her mouth. Mark let out a little laugh at the look she was giving him, "You look so much like your mother, even though you have my eyes, it kills me when you give me that look." Maicey's eyes fluttered open and closed as he talked then smiled up at her father when he finished. He noticed and got an idea. "So I guess it soothes you when I talk, huh? Hmm...what can I talk about to get you to sleep?" he stopped as he thought, "Oh! Umm...what's that song again that Zo always talked about after the meteor? Uh...OH YEA!...Go away spiders, go, go, go. We don't like you no, no, no. Because your icky and sticky..ugh! I can't remember it past that." He glanced down and Maicey yawned. "Oh my gosh it's working. I guess I'll just sing that part over and over." he said excitedly and continued to sing the only part of the song he knew, repeatedly, for the next 10 minutes until she finally went to sleep.
Maddy was awake when he walked in the room. "Hey babe. Did you get her back to sleep easy?" Maddy asked her husband as he laid back down beside her, wrapping a protective arm around her waist. "Yeah piece of cake. Let's go to sleep." he said closing his eyes and instantly going to sleep. They woke up around 7, surprisingly the twins slept for the rest of the night. Mark rolled over and realized that Maddy wasn't in bed. He got up quickly and walked out the bedroom door toward their living room. "Hey Mads. What are you doing?" "Cooking my amazing husband some breakfast. I'm surprised you're up though with having to deal with Maice so early." "I'm used to already being awake for a few hours by now, so this is sleeping in for me." he said walking over and giving Maddy a kiss. "Good point soldier. You want some omelets or pancakes or biscuits and gravy. What are you hungry for?" "Surprise me. I'm going to go get a quick shower. Have you alreeady took one?" Mark said laughing at the look she was giving him. "Of course you have. Guess this means I'm going to have a cold shower...again. You kow it's bad that he doesn't even bother me anymore." And Maddy laughed as he went to get a shower.
5 minutes later Mark was walking out in a towel and rubbing the water out of his hair. "Mads where did you put my-" he stopped when he looked up and saw his whole family sitting on his couch. "Uh hey guys." he waved to everyone. "Hello sweetheart." Elisabeth said while everyone else just smirked and waved back. "Uh Maddy...where did you put all my clothes? They aren't in the usual drawer." "Yeah babe that's because I moved everything around. Here I'll just show you." she said stepping around the counter, "I'll be right back guys." She pushed her shocked husband toward their room. "You could have gave me some kind of warning Mads." Mark said as she opened the drawers where all his clothes were. "Here's your on duty clothes. In this drawer is your boxers. And in this one is your off duty shirts. And all your pants are in the closet." Maddy said pointing to each thing as she said them. "Why..and wait, when did you move everything anyways?" Mark asked. "Just felt like it I guess. And last night when I woke up and you wasn't there I opened our door and you were warming up a bottle. So I figured you would be a while so I rearranged things." she answered simply walking out of the room.
"Hey everyone, sorry for before. I hate it when she gets her random feeling to change everything around. Last tume it was the living room and I about broke my leg tripping over the table." Mark said when he came back out to join his family. "Oh it's quite alright dear. It's nothing we haven't seen before Jim and Josh walk around like that after a shower too." Elisabeth said. He noticed Josh holding MJ and Jim had Maicey. "When did they wake up?" He asked Maddy, walking into the kitchen. "I'm not sure Dad and Josh went in there and they were just laying there wide awake. So they got them and brought them in here." she answered handing him a plate. "Oh my favorite. Chocolate chip stuffed french toast." Mark said kind of excited. "Yes I know." Maddy stated with a laugh and made everyone a plate, "Hey come get your food guys." They all were up in a record amount of time and in the kitchen. But Jim and Josh stopped to put th babies in the little bounce seats that Skye and Josh had given them.
"Jeez have you not eaten lately?" Maddy asked her famly. "Not since like 5 last night. We had an early dinner." Zoe said. "Yeah I didn't eat at all but Skye had a sandwich when she got home." Josh answered. "This looks delicious Maddy." Skye replied. "Yeah it was my favorite thing to eat when I was pregnant with the twins. Mark made it one morning and I fell in love." Maddy told them. "Oh my gosh! Josh you have got to learn to make these!" Skye said after taking a bite. "Jim you too! These are delicious!" Elisabeth retorted. "Why do we have to?" Jim and Josh asked at the same time both earning quite an evil look from their girls. "Yes dear." Jim said quickly. "Of course we will baby." Josh said seconds later. When Skye and Elisabeth smiled Jim and Josh both turned to glare at Mark.
"What? I'm sorry guys. It is my favorite breakfast so I wanted Maddy to try it." Mark held up his hands in surrender. "Yeah whatever man. You are just trying to make Dad and I look bad." Josh said as his glare turned into a laugh. "Well Jim if it makes you feel any better you helped last night when Maice wouldn't go to sleep." Mark turned to face his confused father-in-law. "How did I help?" "Well I noticed Maice was dozing off as I talked but when I stopped talking she would be wide awake. So I figured my voice soothed her and I was trying to find something to talk about to get her to sleep." He stopped explaining for a minute to throw Jim off. "And? What does that have to do with me?" "Well for some reason Zo popped into my head because she went around for weeks singing the most annoying tune ever. Do you remember the song you taught her when the meteor hit?" Mark asked and Jim nodded. "Well apparently your granddaughter likes that song as much as Zo did." "No way? You didn't sing it?" "Oh yes...I did. But I don't know much so you may have to teach it to me." Jim busted out laughing at that idea.
"Wait are we missing something?" Maddy asked looking between Mark, her father, and Zoe. "Zo am I the only one that knows about that song?" Mark asked. "Yep. I didn't tell anyone else. Me, you, and Daddy are the only people that know about it." "Would someone care to explain and or sing the song for us?" Elisabeth asked. "I think not." Jim said winking at his youngest daughter and smiling at Mark, "I can't believe that put her to sleep." "Well it did. She was out in less than 10 minutes." "Well I guess you had a good night then." Jim said sarcastically. "Yeah not really. This little concert happened at like 3 this morning." Mark said."Yep. Welcome to parenthood." Jim said and slapped Mark's shoulder and they finished eating.
After everyone was finished eating and the dishes were cleaned, they all sat around the living room talking. Mark thought it was a great time to finish his conversation with Zoe. "So Zo. We should finish this conversation we were having yesterday. " Mark said and Zoe's eyes got big. "Nah. We can talk later. Mommy and Daddy have to work all night so I was going to see if I could stay over here." "Yeah sure Z." Maddy stepped in. "Thanks Mad." Zoe said. "Now back to our conversation. Did you actua-" "Mark please." Zoe begged."I'm just curious Zo. Was you kidding or did you actually go on a 'date' with-" Mark stopped and his heart sank as he saw tears come up in Zoe's eyes. The rest of the family stopped talking and turned when Zoe spoke next, "Mark stop! Just stop! I can't believe you are doing this! I hate you for this! I'll never forgive you! Josh, Skye I'm going to stay with you tonight." And with that said Zoe got up and ran out of the house.
"Zoe!" Everyone in the room yelled as she slammed the door. "Mark I can't believe you just did that." Maddy said. "What just happened?" Jim asked. Mark hadn't moved or talked since Zoe said she hated him. "Mark?...Mark honey?" Elisabeth said putting a hand on his shoulder and snapping him out of his trance. "Um..I'm going to...Zoe!" He yelled and ran out the door after the little girl. "Do you know what just happened?" Jim asked Maddy. "Nothing." She replied.
"ZO! ZO STOP!" Mark yelled after her, "PLEASE!" "NO! I DON'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU!" she yelled running faster. Mark knew he could catch up easily but held back. "Zo please stop!" he said a little quieter getting closer to her. "GO AWAY!" she said still yelling. "Zoe please! Just stop. Please." Mark huffed as tears started falling and Zoe could hear them in his voice. "What Reynolds? What do you want?" She said viciously turning on her heel to face him. "Zo don't call me that. You've never called me that." "You still didn't answer my question. What. Do. You. Want. Reynolds." she said slowly putting emphasis on his last name.
"Zo please. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you mad, or embarass you, or tell your secret. I was just curious because I love you and I don't care how old Sam is I would have hurt him if he hurt you. I don't want anything or anyone to hurt you. You are my baby sister and I will protect you no matter what." Mark said hurriedly. "No you know what. I just won't tell you anything else, ever again. I thought I could trust you but apparently not. You aren't my big brother anymore. You are just my sister's husband. You just need to leave me alone for, I don't know, maybe the rest of my life." Zoe said turning to walk away but Mark grabbed her arm, gently, and turned her around. "Zo you don't mean that." "Yes I do. Leave me alone." She started crying as she walked away.
Mark was after her in a second. "Zo come here for a second! Just come, sit and talk with me." "No I just want to get away from you right now." Mark picked her up and threw her over his shoulder and carried her to the nearest bench. "Put me down! Mark! Put me down now!" Zoe yelled kicking her legs and hitting his back with her hands. "No not until you talk to me." "But I don't want to talk you. You don't care about me at all." "No Zo that's not true. It's exactly the opposite. I love you and would do anything for you. I never had a baby brother or sister and every since Maddy and I started dating I have thought of you as my family, my baby sister. I just want to protect you from pain, or heartbreak, just everything. And I know you are just almsot 7 but still that doesn't mean you can't get hurt and you are too important to me for that. I can't stand to see you cry and when I saw the tears in your eyes back at the house it broke my heart. When you said that you hated me I froze. My whole world stopped and felt like it ended you mean so much to me I couldn't stand it if you hated me." Mark said as a few tears fell.
Zoe just stared at him, contemplating and going over everything he said in her head. She let a few tears fall as she reached up and wiped away the few stray tears on his cheek. "I love you too. But you don't need to protect me all the time. I have Daddy and Josh for that, but I do appreciate it. And I don't like to see you cry either. You are my big strong soldier you aren't supposed to cry, even if it comes to me being hurt. And I could never hate you. You are the best big brother ever, besides Josh, and I love you Markey." "Markey?" Mark asked with a small laugh. "Yeah that's what I'm going to call you now." "Well alright then. Now would you like to go back to the house and stay with us tonight? Because I could use your help with the babies." "Yes! I love playing with the babies and Josh and Skye fight a lot at night because Skye gets angry that she can't fit in her clothes." Mark laughed, "Yeah I remember those fights when Mads was pregnant. Now let's go!" Mark picked her up in a fast motion and started walking back to the house.
"Markey I'm glad that you and Maddy got married but you were always my brother. I love you my big strong soldier." Zoe told him as she moved their hands back and forth. "I'm happy that you feel that way because you were always my little sister. I planned to protect you no matter what since the day we talked about sleeping dinosaurs. I love you too my little princess." Zoe giggled at being called a princess and turned in front of him and reached up to be picked up. Mark complied and picked her up and put her on his shoulders. "One thing Zo. Please, please NEVER call me Reynolds again I don't think I could handle it again." "Deal Markey! Let's get back I want to play with my neice and nephew and go to sleep. I'm so tired." "Me too Zo. Me too."
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